


Time Will Tell

by lauraxtennant



Series: Post-Episode Collection [9]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Angst, Drama, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, Sexual Content, Sexual Tension, post-gitf
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-25
Updated: 2014-02-17
Packaged: 2017-12-24 12:49:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 55,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/940190
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lauraxtennant/pseuds/lauraxtennant
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Reinette is aboard the TARDIS. Or, I should say, a hopefully slightly more historically accurate Reinette is aboard the TARDIS. How does this affect the Doctor, Rose and Mickey? How long will she stay?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

He grabbed Rose into a hug. "How long did you wait?"

"Five and a half hours!" she answered, returning his embrace with a quick squeeze before drawing back.

He held onto her elbows as she came out of their hug. "We'll make that a standard time, then. Always wait five and a half hours! Reinette's coming for a trip. That okay?"

Rose nodded, plastering a cheerful smile on her face. "Why wouldn't it be?"

"Great!" he enthused. Then his eyes squinted at her in confusion. Something felt off. "Rose?"

But Rose met Reinette's hopeful gaze over his shoulder, and her expression genuinely softened. "Of course it's okay," she replied gently. She was glad he'd at least asked her for her acceptance. However long she'd lived with him, it was primarily his ship, after all; he could've just as easily brought Reinette on board without even bothering to let her know.

He nodded, and then let go of her, bounding over to the TARDIS. "Come on then; things to do, people to see." Mickey gave Rose a shrug of the 'what can you do?' variety, and followed him in.

Rose glanced at Reinette and sensed the other woman's nervousness. She found it strange; Reinette had been so capable and courageous in the face of the clockwork droids, so Rose had expected her to be thrilled with the chance of stepping aboard the TARDIS - certainly more thrilled than frightened. But she supposed that the concept of a time-and-spaceship was even harder to imagine for people of Reinette's time than it had been for Rose herself to contemplate. Understanding how she must be feeling, Rose gave Reinette an encouraging smile, gesturing for her to follow the Doctor and Mickey into the TARDIS.

Reinette smiled back, swallowed thickly, and proceeded to do just that. But just before she stepped through the doors, she turned around to Rose, who was right behind her, and grabbed her arm. "Do you think I will like this?" she asked her quietly.

Rose's eyes widened in surprise. "Yeah," she replied. "It's the most fantastic thing I've ever done."

"Travelling with the Doctor?"

"Yeah."

"Yes. I suppose it must be," she said distractedly, glancing at the TARDIS.

Rose's jaw tightened and she nodded. Reinette let out a long breath and Rose pushed open the doors; they entered the console room together.

The Doctor looked up from the console and grinned. "There you two are. Right! Where do you want to go?"

Rose looked around the room. "Where's Mickey?"

"He's gone to have a rest, I think."

"Oh."

"So! Where to next?" the Doctor repeated.

Reinette looked bewildered. The bigger-on-the-inside aspect of the TARDIS tended to do that to people, Rose knew, so she answered the Doctor's question instead, "Maybe you should take the TARDIS into space first, to show Reinette a constellation or something up close? You know, open the doors and just watch stars being born, that sort of thing. That's what fascinated me the most, those first few days when I came aboard."

"Brilliant idea!" the Doctor beamed, and set the coordinates. Rose made for the corridor. "Wait, where are you going?" he asked her.

"Was gonna get some sleep," she shrugged, before adding, quietly, "Leave you two alone for a bit."

"But you just said you loved this bit," the Doctor replied, as he moved the TARDIS to their new location. "Come and see!"

Rose sighed and met him and Reinette over by the doors just as he opened them. She couldn't help but smile, especially when Reinette gasped in delight. It was a good feeling, seeing something amazing and watching other people see it for the first time; she could understand why the Doctor was addicted to seeing things through his companions' eyes.

"That is remarkable," Reinette murmured, holding onto the edge of the doorway tightly. "Where are we?"

"The constellation of Amas Saduris," the Doctor said proudly. "In the Lamori galaxy, far, far away from Earth." He turned to Rose. "Remember when we went to Poppa Cura?"

She nodded and laughed. "When we accidentally climbed the sacred mountain that should never ever be climbed? How could I forget!"

He chuckled and continued, "Well, Poppa Cura is hidden amidst this constellation. You can't see it from here — remember how small I said it was?"

"Smaller than Pluto. Which means it shouldn't strictly speaking be called a planet…"

He sniffed. "Yes, well. You humans never classify anything correctly. Just because it's small doesn't mean it's not a planet, for goodness' sake."

"Size isn't everything, after all," Rose giggled.

"Exactly!" he laughed.

Rose was relieved. It appeared that they hadn't lost their banter, then. Maybe having Reinette on board wouldn't cause the rift between them that Rose had feared it would.

"I'm going to go to bed," Rose said, after a while of them contemplating the stars in awed silence. "It's been a long day. Nothing like being nearly killed by clockwork robots to get the adrenaline going, but now I'm flagging."

The Doctor's smile faded at the reminder of how close she'd come to being utilised for the fifty-first century starship. Rose noticed, and hurriedly reassured him, "I'm fine. Don't worry. I'll see you tomorrow, all right?" She started to walk up the ramp.

"I'd like to retire as well, Doctor," Reinette spoke up, dragging her eyes away from the mesmerising sight of the twinkling stars. "As Rose said, it has been a very long day."

Rose froze, something lurching inside her stomach. She'd wanted to get away before she had to contemplate the idea of where Reinette would be sleeping. In fact, she'd wanted to be asleep before Reinette went to bed; she wasn't sure what the two of them got up to in pre-revolutionary France together, and to be honest, she didn't want to know. So she wanted to hear no implication of them retiring to the Doctor's bedroom, which was, unfortunately, situated right next to hers. Better to be asleep than to — well, than to hear anything —

"Okdokey," the Doctor responded, closing the TARDIS doors. "Rose, would you show Reinette where the wardrobe room is?" he asked, before continuing to Reinette, "I'm sure you'll find some suitable nightwear in there."

Rose fixed a smile on her face and turned around. "Sure! Follow me."


	2. Chapter 2

Her heart was thumping inside her chest by the time they'd entered the wardrobe room. What would she want to wear? A nightdress? Or something…

Rose gulped. Something sexier?

Bloody hell. This was going to be a nightmare.

"Nightclothes are this way," she said, leading Reinette through the racks of clothing. She stopped, and gestured to the wall. "Take your pick."

Reinette glanced at Rose. "What do you think I should wear?"

Rose's cheeks warmed. Was she seriously expected to answer that? To tell her what she thought Reinette might like to wear to impress the Doctor? Rose felt sick.

"Um…I don't know. Whatever you want," Rose blustered.

Reinette reached out and scanned through the expensive, silky garments, avoiding the less posh ones that Rose was used to perusing.

Rose closed her eyes, trying to regulate her breathing. She'd never felt brave enough to wear any of these particular items, however much she'd secretly wanted to attract the Doctor's attention; she'd stuck to variations of her simple cotton shorts and tank top, and most of the time she wore a dressing gown too. Reinette was confident and sensual, and undoubtedly she'd have no trouble picking something delicious to seduce the Doctor with.

With that thought, Rose started to back away.

"Oh, Rose? Please would you stay? I'll need help removing my dress."

Rose bit back a retort about maybe asking the Doctor to help with that, and smiled winningly, determined not to convey her inner turmoil. She didn't want Reinette to pity her, or think her pathetic. "Okay."

Reinette smiled sheepishly in return. "I suppose you think me terribly vexing, for requiring help to get out of my own clothes; it's just that I'm used to servants helping me, and - "

"I don't mind," Rose interrupted firmly, stepping behind her. She began to unbutton the back of Reinette's dress — there must have been a hundred buttons, she reckoned, because it took ages.

Reinette sighed wistfully. "It must be nice to wear simpler clothing that one can remove oneself."

Rose scowled at the back of Reinette's head, though she knew the other woman hadn't meant anything mean by it. They may have been from the same planet, but they were from different worlds.

"Which century did you say you were from?" Reinette asked.

"The twenty-first."

"Is it a beautiful era?"

"It has its moments," Rose murmured, her lips twitching. "France and Britain are currently friends. Paris is still beautiful. Versailles is still grand and lovely, from what I've seen in pictures." She finished unbuttoning the dress, and then turned Reinette around to start unlacing the front. "Do you enjoy living in the eighteenth century?" Rose asked with a smile.

Reinette tilted her head to the side, contemplative. "I really don't know any different," she pointed out. "But yes. As you say; it has its moments."

Rose thought she could detect a slightly mischievous twinkle in Reinette's eye. "You mean the King?" she asked cheekily.

Reinette nodded. "We had some wonderful times together."

"Had?"

"Yes." Reinette paused, then added, "We are still the closest of friends."

"I thought…I mean, I was under the impression that you two were still…um."

"I am still, officially, his mistress, yes."

"Sorry, I'm being nosy - " Rose began to apologise, as she helped Reinette push her dress off her shoulders. It pooled around Reinette's feet on the floor and Rose winced as she looked at Reinette's corset. "That must be painful to wear all day."

"I am often tempted to lace it in a looser way, like other women tend to do. But one gets used to it, I suppose," she gave a half-shrug. "However, it is delightful to be rid of it at night." Rose helped her to unlace it, and as it fell to the floor Reinette breathed in deeply. "You see? Now I can inhale properly," she gave a measured giggle.

"Yeah," Rose smiled. If she were a different sort of girl, the sort who was prone to cattiness and bitterness, Rose would've noticed that now Reinette's chest was free from her corset, her breasts weren't appearing nearly so pert and inviting. Rose smothered her absurd giggle at that stray thought, and internally reprimanded herself for thinking so meanly. It wasn't like the Doctor would even care, not now that Reinette had captured his attention already, so Rose's little burst of triumph that perhaps the older woman wasn't quite as sumptuous beneath her dress as Rose had thought she would be was completely irrelevant anyway.

"As to what we were talking about before," Reinette started.

"It's okay, you don't have to tell me," Rose assured her. It wasn't like she wanted to hear who Reinette now considered to be her — her — well, her lover — if not the King.

She placed her hand on Rose's arm. "It is fine. I do not mind. As I was saying, the King and I are very close, but we no longer engage in anything sexual. It has been that way for some years, now, actually."

Rose could feel her cheeks heating up — which she found absurd, because it wasn't like her to act like a blushing virgin. But still, the way Reinette spoke of things so frankly was something that Rose wasn't entirely used to.

"In fact I arrange other mistresses for him," Reinette continued casually.

Rose's eyebrows lifted. "What? Seriously?"

"Mmm. It is not an ideal situation, but it — well. It is necessary."

"I don't understand. Why would - "

"I am not able to partake in such things any longer," she explained carefully. She glanced at the floor, bringing her arms up to cradle herself as she shivered slightly. Rose was thus reminded that Reinette was standing there in her thin chemise alone, so she quickly picked up the nightdress she had been admiring before, and helped her into it. She then brought over a warm dressing gown, and Reinette smiled at her gratefully as she put it on. "I lost babies, you see, on two occasions of pregnancy," she murmured to Rose.

Rose looked at her in shock, tears glistening in her eyes. "Oh my god. I'm so sorry - "

Reinette smiled sadly. "Thank you. No, I decided, after those two incidences, that I would not take a chance of losing another. I couldn't bear it. Thus, I arrange for others to please him. He is devoted to me, though — we play cards and hunt together, and I do exert a certain political influence, still, for which I am grateful. I have enemies because of that, because of my humble beginnings, but that doesn't much worry me anymore."

"I see," Rose murmured, her voice rough. "So, um - "

She was about to ask Reinette about the Doctor — about the exact nature of her relationship with the Doctor — when the very man entered the room; she promptly cut herself off.

"The TARDIS has set up a nice room for you, Reinette, so when you're ready I'll show you the way," he said, as he came upon them in the wardrobe room.

Reinette cleared her throat. "Thank you. Rose here has been helping me undress; I feel terribly foolish about it."

"Don't," Rose assured her.

"Yeah, don't worry," smiled the Doctor. "Rose is the least judgemental person I know."

Rose felt guilty upon hearing those words of praise. She'd certainly judged Reinette before she'd got to know her. Mind you, she suspected that Reinette had done the same with her.

"You were very efficient, I must say," Reinette said to her. "One would think that you are used to removing such garments — have you worn corsets and things yourself?"

"Rose likes to dress up when we go for trips to the past," the Doctor grinned.

She blushed. "Er, yeah. It's fun, you know…" It was fun, pretending to be someone else, she thought. Someone who was made for such clothing. Someone who might catch the Doctor's —

No. Rose swallowed and continued, "Right, then. I'd better get ready for bed myself. See you two tomorrow - "

Reinette surprised her, then, by giving her a hug. "Thank you, Rose," she whispered into her ear, and gave her a grateful squeeze.

Rose, astounded by this turn of events, hugged her back. "No problem. Um…goodnight."

The Doctor was equally astonished. He wondered just how friendly they had gotten whilst in here. He shot a bemused glance at Rose over Reinette's shoulder, and she returned it with one of her own. When Reinette finally released Rose, looking a little embarrassed, the Doctor nodded towards the exit. "I'll show you your room."

"Yes, thank you."


	3. Chapter 3

He led her out, and Rose leant against the rack of clothes, completely befuddled. Then she glanced at the dress and corset on the floor. Sighing, she bent down and picked them up, hanging them carefully in the nearest free space. She touched the expensive cloth, rubbing it between her thumb and forefinger, wondering if she'd ever feel so distinguished to wear something like this. It was probably pure silk. The Doctor was right, she did like dressing up in period clothing, but she'd never seen something worn by the uncrowned queen of France before, and it made her feel…

She wasn't sure how it made her feel. She was a bundle of conflicting emotions right now. Up until their conversation in the wardrobe room, Rose had felt inadequate and inferior in comparison to this magnificent, accomplished woman. But now she was aware that she wasn't some high and mighty aristocrat, not really — she was a real, genuine person, a real woman, with real insecurities and a real life. And a horribly sad one, at that. She couldn't imagine the pain of going through two miscarriages, of having to arrange for her lover to take new lovers because of it. Reinette was beautiful, and still quite young; it must be awful to watch others take her place.

But that was King Louis. What about the Doctor? Where did she stand with him? Was she still going to abstain or was being with a Time Lord a different matter entirely? Was it a matter of it being too painful, or just that she didn't want to chance conceiving again? If it was the latter, then…well, Rose didn't think that a Time Lord and a human could conceive, so maybe…

Rose sighed. Whether they had sex or not, she couldn't get away from the fact that he was obviously besotted with her. She was beautiful and accomplished and brave and fantastic, and that was enough for the Doctor; he probably wouldn't require any more himself, just basking in her brilliance would be enough. He'd snogged her before, Rose knew. Maybe they would stick to that.

Rose wondered if he'd start to hold Reinette's hand instead of her own. Whether he'd hug her just as readily as he'd taken to hugging Rose. She let out a whoosh of breath. What would she do, if that were the case? Could she bear it? Could she stand there and watch it happen in front of her eyes? Stand there with Mickey, like they were spare parts.

She shuddered. She didn't want to think about spare parts right now, not so hot on the heels of nearly being used as some herself.

She had been so sure, last week, that the Doctor's flirting with her had been meaningful; that he'd wanted something more with her. Prior to today, the way he looked at Rose indicated to her that he wanted her. But now…well, things had evidently changed. Unless he reckoned he could have both — the love and companionship of Reinette, and the other side of things with Rose. Oh god, she realised. Just as Reinette had been mistress to King Louis, who also had his Queen, was she now expected to be in that role for the Doctor, whilst he held Reinette in higher esteem as his queen? Hmph. No chance. She'd play second fiddle to no one, even if it meant the chance of sex with the Doctor.

"Rose?"

Rose jumped guiltily, completely startled as the Doctor re-entered the wardrobe room calling her name. He made his way through the racks of clothing until he found her again.

"I wondered if you'd still be in here. Are you all right?" he asked her softly.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said immediately, with a large smile.

"Don't do that."

"Don't do what?"

"I don't like it when you give me your fake smile. It's lovely and everything, but it's not nearly as nice as your proper one, the one that actually means you're happy."

She blinked at him in surprise.

"What, you thought I couldn't tell the difference?" he remarked, an eyebrow raised.

"I…" She shook her head, clearing her thoughts. "What do you want?"

"Wanted to say goodnight," he replied.

"Right. Okay. Goodnight, then," she said, and started to push past him.

He grabbed her hand. "Wait." He pulled her closer. "Something's bothering you. Please tell me what it is."

"It's nothing - "

"Rose."

She sighed. "It's just…" she trailed off, wondering what to say. "Do you know everything about Reinette's life? About what she's been through?"

He frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I mean," she clarified, "That she told me about how her and Louis don't — you know. Anymore. Because of her miscarriages."

"Oh, right, yes. It's really very sad, of course. It is said that he still valued her prominent role in court, though; they remained close."

"Yeah, that's what she said, too."

"You seemed to be getting along well. She must like you if she's confided such personal things to you already. Mind you, who wouldn't like you, eh? You're - " He stopped.

"What, Doctor?"

"Well," he swallowed. "Very...likeable."

"Right. Ta."

"I'm not sure how long she's planning on staying, but - " the Doctor began.

But Rose interrupted. "Where's her room?"

"Hmm?"

"Her room. Where is it?"

"Oh! It's next to Mickey's." Then he frowned and, curious, asked, "Why?"

Rose bit her lip. She couldn't exactly answer that question. Still, she was delighted with his answer. Mickey's room was in a different corridor to hers, down near the library. Which meant that Reinette's was, too. Nowhere near the Doctor's. Mind you, that didn't say much; it wasn't like he slept in there every night. In fact, now that she thought about it, he slept in the library more often, when he dropped off whilst reading. She frowned. Maybe she wasn't so pleased with his answer.

"Rose? Rose?"

She realised he was talking to her. "Hmm? Sorry, what?"

"You went off in your own little world for a second there," he chuckled. "Penny for your thoughts?"

She blushed. Again. This was really quite ridiculous; she didn't think she'd ever blushed as often as she had this evening. Not even when she and the Doctor engaged in a full-on flirt-a-thon like they did occasionally. Like last week, for instance, at that Emperor's ball. When she'd been wearing that blue dress and the Doctor had looked at her like he'd wanted to —

Well, to rip it off.

That was what she'd thought he wanted to do at the time. But maybe she'd just imagined it.

She cleared her throat, feeling decidedly hot and bothered. "No, I was just…" she mumbled, trying to think of a sufficient response.

He raised his eyebrows. "Rose?"

"Yeah?" she replied shakily.

"You're acting as though you were thinking something inappropriate," he smirked.

She gaped at his cheek. "Oi!" she exclaimed, slapping his arm.

"Well, you are," he countered.

"I wasn't," she said stubbornly. She was about to move away, but then realised he was still holding onto her hand. She glanced down. Their fingers had unconsciously entwined, and the sight inexplicably made tears spring to her eyes. She felt his fingers beneath her chin, lifting it gently to allow their eyes to meet.

"I've made a mistake, haven't I," he whispered.

"What?" she mumbled, blinking quickly. She couldn't let him see her cry. She just couldn't.

"You're not acting yourself, and you're upset, and the only thing that's changed is that Reinette is with us. I should never have…" he trailed off, and dropped his hand from her chin.

"No, Doctor, it's fine," she said hurriedly. "I like her. She's really nice, and she deserves to see some amazing things, especially after what she's been through at the hands of those clockwork droid things."

"Well that's what I thought," he agreed, his voice quiet. "I thought so too, and I thought you'd think so as well."

"Well I do," she said, nodding. "So that's fine then."

"Right," he replied, but he frowned. "So why…why are you upset?"

"I'm not," she insisted. "I'm not upset. I'm just tired, I suppose. But I'm fine. I'm fine. Don't look so worried. I'm fine, I promise."

His thumb stroked across the back of her hand and she shivered. "Okay," he said slowly. "I'll, um. I'll let you get some rest, then."

"Thank you. Night, Doctor."

"Goodnight," he replied, letting go of her hand. He immediately shoved his hands in his pockets, watching her leave.

Rose made it all the way to her ensuite bathroom, until she was in a nice, hot bubble bath, before she let the tears fall. She made no noise; she hated crying loudly. She just blinked, and let the moisture run down her cheeks to land in the warm water.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, Rose was done feeling sorry for herself. She got up early, got dressed into a nice t-shirt and her tightest jeans — the ones that made her feel good about her curves - cleaned her teeth with vigour, and put on her make-up. She tried not to overdo the latter; she didn't want to look even un-classier than she felt, compared with the refined and sophisticated woman in the other corridor. Then she pulled on her boots, and made her way to the galley for breakfast.

When she entered, she was surprised to see it was just the Doctor in there. "Good morning," she said cheerfully, as he looked up from his toast and tea to greet her with a dazzling smile.

"Yes it is," he replied, and gestured to the counter. "I made you a mug - was just about to come and wake you up."

That was their usual morning routine: he came and woke her with a mug of steaming hot tea, and she grunted and buried herself in her duvet, telling him to give her five more minutes. He usually complied, but he never left for the duration; he simply sat next to her on the bed and playfully annoyed her through tickling or humming, until she rolled onto her back and glared up at him beneath her messy, bedhead hair.

"S'pose you're wondering why I'm awake," she read his thoughts, guessing they had been similar to her own. She picked up the mug and took a sip, smiling gratefully at the Doctor for it.

"Yes, I am, as it happens." He leant forwards as she came and sat opposite him at the table. "What's going on?"

"Nothing," she shrugged, enjoying the way his eyes twinkled curiously at her. "Just thought I'd get up early and see where you were planning on taking us today."

He didn't look convinced, but leant back and answered her query, "Weeelll, I wasn't sure, really. Thought we might go somewhere quiet, give you lot a chance to recuperate from yesterday."

"Somewhere hot, please," she requested cheekily. "With lots of sun and maybe some sand and some sea…?"

He arched an eyebrow. "I'd love to give you a tropical paradise, Rose Tyler, but I'm afraid that it won't be on the itinerary today."

She frowned, suspicious. "Why not? You just said that you didn't know where to take us. So I'm specifying for you."

"It's not that, it's just…" he lowered his voice. "I'm not sure that a beach would be the best place to take Reinette."

Rose tried not to flinch. "I bet she'd find an alien beach lovely. Take us to that one with purple sand - "

"No, it's just that her, er, attire wouldn't be appropriate."

Rose looked at him like he was daft. "She's not gonna put that big dress back on, surely? It'd be practical practically nowhere. She can borrow something from me, or the wardrobe room."

"You really think that someone from the eighteenth century will have no trouble wearing a bikini like one of yours?" he retorted, his eyebrows rising. Rose rolled her eyes. "Rose, I don't think her sense of modesty would allow it - "

"Well she got undressed down to just her chemise in front of me last night, so I hardly think she's embarrassed by that sort of thing, and she is a professional courtesan..." she replied with a shrug. "Anyway, thought you'd be delighted."

"Delighted? By what?"

"By the prospect of seeing her in a bikini." She took a casual sip of her tea.

"What - Rose - "

He was interrupted by Mickey entering the room.

"Why's it suddenly gone silent?" Mickey asked curiously, as he walked over to the kettle. "Don't stop talking on my account."

Rose smirked at the Doctor over the top of her mug. The Doctor whispered to her, "You've changed your tune."

"How have I?" she whispered back.

"Well I didn't expect you to tease me about another woman in a bikini this early in the morning," he snorted.

"Why are you two whispering?" asked Mickey.

They ignored him. "Well I've gotten exactly nowhere teasing you about myself in a bikini, so I figured that you'd be more interested in someone else's."

His eyes nearly popped out of his head and he leant forwards again. "Are you suggesting that I'd rather - "

He was interrupted again as Mickey came to sit next to him at the table. Rose arched a challenging eyebrow, but there was no way he was going to continue this discussion in the presence of Mickey Smith. He stood up.

"I'm going to move the TARDIS. See you in ten minutes, Mickey," he said, then, facing Rose, he gestured with his head to the door.

Rose made a show of sighing and heaving herself up. "Any preferences of where to go today, Mickey?"

"Dunno," he mumbled. "Alien planet?"

"Right, specific, I like it," Rose teased playfully, then followed the Doctor out into the corridor.

"Rose, you are being decidedly cheeky this morning," the Doctor said to her as she joined him.

"Shall I go and get Reinette? She might need help getting ready," she replied.

He frowned. "What's going on?"

"What?"

"Why are you being all…"

"All what?"

"I dunno. But it's weird."

"Thanks," she snorted. "I'll meet you in the console room in a minute, all right?"

"Wait, Rose - "

But she had already legged it down the corridor.

::

Rose knocked gently on Reinette's door, and waited for the other woman to open it. When she still hadn't done so after a few moments, Rose knocked a little harder. "Reinette? It's me, Rose. Can I come in?"

Reinette called out the affirmative, so Rose opened the door and stepped inside. Reinette was standing over the other side of the room, staring inside a chest of drawers. "All these clothes have appeared," she motioned to the drawers' contents.

"Yeah, the TARDIS does that sometimes. She likes to rearrange stuff."

"She?"

"The TARDIS is alive," Rose said carefully. "She's sentient. I dunno, you just get used to it."

"How do you know she's a she?"

"I…" Rose frowned. "I'm not sure. She just feels like she is. I can hear her, in my head, a little bit. Not like the Doctor can, and not properly, not words or anything — it's just a, a tingle, sort of thing. It's 'cos I formed a connection with her once, to save the Doctor."

"You are quite a remarkable young woman, aren't you," Reinette said softly.

"I'm sorry?" Rose asked, confused.

"You just seem to…I don't know. You fit, here. You are right. You — you belong."

She shrugged. "I've lived here for over a year. I'm used to it, I s'pose."

Reinette nodded. "Yes." She glanced at the clothes again. "What ought I to wear?"

Rose opened her mouth to answer but was interrupted by her phone ringing. She murmured her apologies to Reinette and quickly answered it. "What?" she asked, because she'd seen it was the Doctor on the caller I.D.

"Thought you'd like to know where we're going, so that you can advise Reinette what to wear," he replied.

"Thanks." There was a pause. "Go on then, tell me."

"We're going to the Waterfall of Santic a'lora. It's a beautiful sight to see, Rose. You'll love it."

She smiled to herself. "And what is the appropriate attire for such a place?" she asked teasingly. "Any swimming involved? Shall I grab the bikinis?"

"No, no," he assured her. "The Waterfall is a sacred place, no swimming allowed there."

"Never usually stops us - "

"No bikinis, Rose. Don't scare her."

Rose giggled. "Very well. What then?"

"I dunno…it will be quite warm. Maybe you could wear that sundress of yours? The white one with the flow-y skirt-y bit. With the tiny flowers embroidered on the hem. That one."

"I didn't need such specificity," she murmured, enunciating the last word pointedly. She was very amused by his knowledge of her clothes.

"Well, I like that one."

"You like everything I - " she started, then stopped. She was about to say that he liked everything she wore, but it didn't quite feel —

"Yes, well," he replied succinctly. He then hurried to add, "Anything's fine by me. Just don't take too long. Bye for now."

"Doctor - " But it was too late. He'd hung up. They were forever cutting each other off these days.

She pocketed her phone and cleared her throat. "Right. We're going to some waterfall place." She came over to the wardrobe next to the chest of drawers and opened it. "There we go. Perfect," she murmured, as she pulled out a summery dress for Reinette to wear. "I know it's not as posh as what you're used to, and it's quite simple, but it's not too immodest, is it?"

"It's lovely," Reinette murmured. "Will you be changing, then? Into the one the Doctor wants you to wear?"

She hadn't realised that Reinette could hear his end of the conversation as well. She'd have to turn the volume of her phone down. "Um, no. I'll wear something similar, but not that one. It doesn't do him any good to think that I'll do as he says," she grinned.

Reinette laughed. "Oh, that's excellent!"

"Well he shouldn't get to boss us around, should he? Just 'cos he's the designated driver," Rose shrugged.

Reinette nodded. "I wish I had your freedom."

"Hmm?"

"Nothing, don't worry. I think I can manage getting dressed in this, so you can go and get ready yourself," she smiled.

"Okay. I'll come back for you in a minute, though — you might get lost on the way back to the console room otherwise."

"Thank you, that would be most helpful," Reinette agreed.


	5. Chapter 5

Once Rose and Reinette were ready and had arrived in the console room, the Doctor's face lit up. "At last! Right, come on. There's so much to see, it'll take at least 'til the afternoon!"

They all exited the TARDIS, and the Doctor led the others through jungle-like undergrowth. "It's about a mile this way," he explained, brushing some lianas aside. Then he turned suddenly, his eyes wide. "Ah."

"What is it?" Rose groaned.

"We can't get through that way," he winced. "We'll have to do a spot of climbing."

"Great," enthused Mickey.

"Climbing?" asked Reinette, alarmed.

"Don't worry, it'll be fine," said the Doctor. "We'll help you up."

Cautiously, Reinette stepped forwards. Glancing up at the rather high branch she had to climb upon, she swallowed hard. "I really don't think - "

The Doctor gestured for Mickey to kneel down on one knee.

"This is embarrassing," muttered Mickey.

"Step on Mickey's thigh and I'll hoist you up the rest of the way," explained the Doctor.

"Are you sure you won't drop me?"

The Doctor looked offended. "Of course I won't. I'm stronger than I look, and these are the safest hands you'll ever see."

"Until one gets chopped off and regrows," Rose snorted.

The Doctor looked over his shoulder and stuck his tongue out at her childishly, before facing Reinette again. "Go on then, hop up."

She rested her hands on the Doctor's shoulders as she stepped on Mickey's knee, and then closed her eyes. The Doctor put his hands on her waist and lifted her up so that she was seated on the branch. She gripped the branch tightly and opened her eyes. "Oh. That was simpler than I expected."

"See?" the Doctor grinned, waving his hands at her. "Safe as can be."

Mickey stood up, and pulled himself up to the branch. Reinette looked at him angrily. "What?" he asked.

"Are you not going to help Rose, too?" she demanded.

Mickey laughed. "Rose would rather kick me in the face than let me help her up here."

"Don't be daft," Rose retorted. "I wouldn't resort to violence." She grabbed hold of the branch and deftly swung herself up. "I did gymnastics as a kid. Always been flexible," she explained to Reinette.

Reinette had no idea what she meant, but nodded amiably. The Doctor grinned in delight, then got himself atop the branch too, although he did get a little stuck halfway, which obviously made Rose laugh.

Once he'd righted himself, with a helpful tug up from Rose and Mickey, he dusted his suit trousers and looked around for a moment.

But then there was a slight creaking sound and Reinette asked, rather wisely, "Is this branch strong enough for all of us?"

"Good point," muttered the Doctor, who quickly jumped onto another. "We'd better hurry along. Reinette, give me your hand." She did, and he helped her manoeuvre to the next branch. "Grab hold of those lianas and edge your way along slowly. Once you've reached that other trunk you'll be fine; there's a bridge across the rest of the valley."

"Valley!" she said in alarm. "Do you mean to tell me that that is the reason we could not walk across? Because we are now suspended above a valley?"

He floundered for a response. "Er. Yes?"

She shook her head at him. "The unnecessary risks you take, honestly."

"Well how else are we supposed to get across?"

"You could have landed your ship a little closer to this supposedly beautiful waterfall."

He frowned. "Just — just - "

"Never insult his driving abilities," Mickey muttered.

"I shall do what I like, like Rose," Reinette retorted crossly.

All three of their pairs of eyes widened. The Doctor turned to Rose and murmured, "You have a fan."

Rose straightened her shoulders. "Don't sound so surprised."

"I'm not. In fact I am also a fan. Possibly your biggest. I'd love to be an independent woman like you," the Doctor whispered.

"Shut up," she muttered, unimpressed with his attempt at humour.

"Sorry," he smiled. "You want to go next?"

She sighed. "All right. Let me get my balance," she said, holding onto his arm for a moment as she jumped up and then stabilised herself, before grabbing onto the lianas and making her way across behind Reinette.

The Doctor and Mickey shared a glance. Mickey motioned for the Doctor to go next.

Trying to appear at ease, the Doctor started walking across the branch behind Rose, barely holding the lianas himself. As a direct result, he slipped, and instinctively shouted Rose's name as he stumbled. Instantly, she swung around and grabbed his arm. "You daft Time Lord," she muttered, hanging onto him as he attempted to get his footing. "You're not Tarzan, you know."

He sniffed, a bit embarrassed - especially when he realised that Reinette and Mickey were both laughing at him. He met Rose's eyes with a helpless look. "Thank you for catching me," he murmured.

"Well I wasn't gonna let you fall, was I," she retorted. "Then none of us would ever get to the Waterfall of Splendour."

He smiled. "It's not called that."

"I know," she replied, rolling her eyes. "Hold onto my waist from behind," she told him, turning again.

"What?" he said dumbly.

"I said, hold onto me. Then you won't slip again."

"But what if I do, and end up taking you down with me?"

"Well then I'll be a bit annoyed," she agreed, before laughing. "Just do it."

He complied, putting his hands firmly on her hips as they walked the rest of the way along the branch. Once or twice, his grip tightened as he feared losing his balance, and Rose had to keep her smile of pleasure to herself. It was quite nice, having his hands there. Pressing into her hips. Holding her tightly.

When they reached the tree trunk that he'd pointed to earlier, she thought he'd let go of her. Instead, he pulled her back, into him, to whisper in her ear, "Don't think I haven't noticed the dress, by the way."

She gasped quietly in surprise and instinctively whirled around, dislodging his hands. "It's new," she told him.

"I gathered."

"Do you like the one I picked out for Reinette?" she murmured.

"I do," he nodded. "You have good taste."

She looked him up and down. "Well that's debatable."

"Oi!" he retorted. Then he realised that Mickey and Reinette were both staring at them expectantly. "Oh. Right. Anyway! The bridge is just there. Let's, er, cross it."


	6. Chapter 6

Ten minutes later, they had reached the Waterfall. Situated amongst the trees and other flora was the most beautiful cavern and lake Rose had ever seen. "This is even better than the one on Flaara," she murmured.

"It is," the Doctor agreed softly.

The four of them explored the Waterfall and its accompanying grottos eagerly. At first, there were a few others there — locals, Rose reckoned, for they were praying, unlike the four of them: the most obvious tourists in the universe.

But after a few hours or so, no one else was around, which made Rose grin. "So the lake is sacred, is it?" she said to the Doctor, coming over to stand next to him at a rare moment where Reinette had left his side.

"Yes, I already told - " He caught the devilish look in her eye as he turned to face her. "Don't, Rose."

"What? All the locals have gone home for a siesta, you said."

"Yes, they have, but - " He paused, then grinned. "Hold on, you can't go in there anyway. You didn't bring your bikini."

Rose shrugged, unconcerned. "Thought we might do a bit of skinny-dipping."

The Doctor's eyes popped out of his head — or near enough, anyway. It was a boggled expression. "No, no, nonono - " he said hurriedly. Rose noticed that his gaze dropped to her chest twice during his response, and she realised that the spray of the waterfall had already made her dress slightly damp; the white cotton had gone a bit transparent at the top, and he could evidently see a glimpse of her lacy white bra beneath it. She raised her eyebrows as he kept averting his gaze, and wondered if he'd had the same trouble when he was looking at Reinette. Probably. She sighed. He really was just a typical man. How could she not have realised that before?

"I'm just joking, Doctor," she said, rolling her eyes.

"Oh."

He almost sounded disappointed. She couldn't win!

Mickey and Reinette came over. "Shall we go back to the TARDIS?" asked Mickey. "Only, I'm getting a bit hungry."

The Doctor blinked rapidly at Rose for a moment, then turned to Mickey. "Yes. Okay. Lunch. Or dinner. Or whatever, really. TARDIS, yes, right then."

He started in that direction. Mickey glanced at Rose. "What did you do to him?"

"Nothing," she replied, holding her hands up. "Absolutely nothing."

"I don't think I want to go back the same way we came," Reinette murmured, looking slightly queasy.

Rose stepped over to her and linked her arm through hers. She pretended to herself that it was just a gesture of friendliness and not a ploy so that Reinette couldn't attach herself to the Doctor again, like she'd been doing all day. "Don't worry," she reassured her, then called out to the Doctor, "Oi! Doctor! Go and get the TARDIS and bring it closer, yeah?"

He whirled around as he heard her. He noticed her widened eyes and slightly tilted head and picked up on her reasoning. Evidently Reinette wasn't keen on returning through the climbing route. "Okay. Won't be long!" Then he paused. "Ah. Thing is, I'm not so good at the balance thing, so - " He looked at Rose pointedly. "Rose?"

Rose nodded. "You stay here with Mickey. I'll go back with the Doctor and we'll come and pick you up."

"Thank you," Reinette murmured to her, with feeling.

"No problem."

::

As they made their way across the bridge, Rose realised that this was the first time since they'd arrived here today that they'd been properly on their own. Reinette had been hanging onto his arm throughout their exploration of the Waterfall, and though Rose was trying not to begrudge her, it was nice to have the Doctor to herself for a little bit. She smiled.

He took hold of her hand. Her smile widened.

"What're you grinning about?" he asked her, bumping his shoulder against hers playfully.

"Oh, nothing," she sighed happily.

"It must be something."

"It's just a lovely day, that's all."

"Sun shining," he remarked.

"Birds singing," she finished, and they looked at each other and giggled.

"You like it here, then?" he asked.

"It's been great. It's a beautiful place, Doctor." She paused. "It's certainly impressed Reinette."

"It has?"

"Yes. She told me earlier that she could never have imagined such a wonderful place."

"Oh, well," he shrugged modestly, to which Rose laughed.

"Where are we gonna go next?"

"Somewhere exciting. We'll stop for some food first, though." He waggled his eyebrows. "Then how do you feel about doing a little world-saving?"

Rose eyed him suspiciously. "You really do go looking for trouble, don't you."

"No, no. It's just that I received a message on the psychic paper, earlier. Someone needs our help."

"The Face of Boe again, maybe?"

"Not sure. But we'll soon find out."

They'd reached the end of the bridge, so they quickly climbed up to the infamous branch. Rose stopped, and pondered the lianas. "Tarzan would never have been able to swing on them," she realised.

"Hmm?"

"Those. Tarzan wouldn't've been able to swing on them, 'cos they're rooted in the ground. Disney got it wrong."

"Disney gets lots of things wrong, but they still make the best films in the entire cosmos," he informed her wisely, then placed his hands on her waist. "Go on then," he murmured into her ear. "Lead me across. And don't let me fall."

"I think you're exaggerating your balance problems just to get your hands on me," she teased, slowly starting to walk along the branch.

"Never," he gasped in mock-horror. He almost lost his footing, then, and clutched her tightly to his front. "Woah. That was close."

"Did you do that on purpose?" she asked, her heart racing.

"No," he said honestly. "I really am very bad at this. I once walked along a tight-rope, no problem. This time around I'm useless."

She giggled to herself.

"What?"

"Nothing. Just…just imagining you in a circus." She started to cackle hysterically at the thought, and he couldn't help but laugh with her.

"You'd be the tight-rope walker and acrobatics girl," he said. "And I'd be the lion-tamer."

"Pfft, no way!"

"What?"

"You'd be the guy in charge. The one who comes out and introduces everyone. Then you'd try your hand at everything. Maybe save a damsel in distress from a knife-thrower - "

"That could be Reinette."

"The knife-thrower? Definitely," Rose grinned. "Especially if you ever called her a damsel in distress."

"Yes, you're right. I shouldn't call her that. She's very accomplished when it comes to things courtly and artist-y. I suppose she's just not had the opportunity to climb trees and things."

"At least she got across this branch without having to hold onto me," she pointed out.

"Oi! I — I - " he floundered for a response to that, but couldn't think of anything so gave up. They'd made it to the other side, at last, and he grabbed Rose's hand. Together, they jumped off of the branch the short distance to the ground, and made their way to the TARDIS, chatting about circuses the entire way.


	7. Chapter 7

Once the Doctor and Rose were in the console room, he carefully inputted the coordinates for the location where Mickey and Reinette were waiting.

"Sure you're gonna make it?" Rose teased, nudging his arm with her elbow.

"Of course I will," he scoffed.

"You do have a bit of a track record of making mistakes…"

"Yes, well, I'm _concentrating_. Besides, can't exactly abandon them in the middle of nowhere, can I?" He squinted at the console screen, double-checking his calculations.

Just like that, Rose's good mood faltered. She swallowed hard, and backed away from him to sit on the jumpseat whilst he piloted the TARDIS. He hadn't put this much consideration into his actions on the spaceship. Jumping through that mirror on a horse, not knowing when he'd get back — if at all. Honestly.

But of course, of course, he couldn't abandon Reinette someplace where she didn't belong, could he? Rose narrowed her eyes at his back. Did he even realise what he was saying half the time?

The journey was swift and smooth, and he dashed to the TARDIS doors immediately, poking his head out. "Ha, Rose Tyler!" he called over his shoulder. "Look at that. Perfect landing."

Rose arched an eyebrow. "Figures," she muttered under her breath. Then she put that smile back on her face and strolled out of the TARDIS after him.

She stopped still barely a step outside. Reinette had her arms wrapped around his neck, hugging him tightly. For god's sake. They had been gone five seconds. Try waiting five and a half bloody hours, she thought.

Mickey wandered over to her. "You look grumpy."

"Ta," she mumbled.

"What's up?" His eyes followed her line of sight, and he hummed under his breath. "Oh. Yeah, she didn't shut up about him while you were gone."

"So what?" Rose shrugged casually, still watching the Doctor and Reinette. Luckily she had let go of him now, but they were wandering over to look at the flora, speaking quietly with one another.

"Just thought you should know, that's all."

"Why?"

"I dunno. I just…"

"Stop trying to stir things up, Micks."

"I'm not!"

"Fine. What did she say, then?"

"Oh, just stuff about how amazing his Lordship is and all that."

"Right."

"Do you think they're - "

Rose's head snapped around to face him. "What?"

Mickey's eyes widened at the fierceness of Rose's gaze. "Babe, I didn't mean anything by it. Just curious, that's all."

"What are you going on about?"

"Well, them two," he clarified, nodding his head towards them. "She seems quite taken with him."

"Yeah. So?"

"So don't you have a problem with that?"

"Reinette's nice," Rose replied neutrally. "We've had a few chats since she came aboard and I like her."

"Yeah, I know, but you like everyone. But do you like the fact that the Doctor likes her?"

"Not any of my business who he likes," Rose frowned.

Mickey laughed. "Oh, don't give me that."

"What?"

"That 'I'm totally not bothered' face. I know that expression. You used that expression a lot whilst we were together and I'd done something to piss you off but you pretended I hadn't."

"Well, what does that tell you about our relationship, then?" she snapped. He blinked at her and her hand flew to her mouth. "I'm really sorry," she said hurriedly. "I didn't mean that. I'm sorry."

He shrugged and sniffed. "It's all right." Then he raised his eyebrows. "I knew you were bothered by them. Jealousy's quite a hard emotion to hide."

She huffed. "I'm not jealous, as such. But look at 'em. Thick as thieves and he's only known her like, two days. Not even that. God, I dunno. I thought we were coming here to pick you two up and then going out for food, and the Doctor's got this message thing on the psychic paper telling him someone needs his help so we've got that to sort out, too, but now she's hanging onto his arm and getting him to show her all the flowers again. I just hate wasting time, that's all."

"Right. Sure." He paused. "Look, Rose, are you sure you're gonna be all right, dealing with this? 'Cos, way I see it, we don't know how long she's planning on staying. What if she's here for ages?"

"I dunno. At least she's nice, though. Don't think I could stand it if she wasn't."

"Maybe that'll actually make it harder," Mickey suggested cautiously. "I mean, if she was horrible, then she wouldn't be here."

Rose bit her lip, looking over at the Time Lord and his new friend. "It felt like normal, me and him walking back to the TARDIS together. He barely mentioned her. But now she's back in his line of sight again…" she murmured. At that moment, Reinette must have said something hilarious, because the Doctor barked out a laugh that Rose and Mickey could hear from here. "Shitting hell," Rose cursed. "How does she actually exude that much charm? God, she was so friendly to me earlier that _I_ nearly started fancying her!"

Mickey chuckled. "Well, she's a courtesan or whatever, ain't she? All flirty and that, that's what they're supposed to be like."

"Not helping," Rose sing-songed.

"Look, I reckon you should just tell him."

Rose froze. "Tell him what?"

"Tell him that you're uncomfortable with her coming travelling with us."

"What? Don't be daft."

"Rose - "

"I'm just being silly. And petty. And all that." She waved her hand around vaguely. "He's nine hundred and one years old; not like I can tell him what to do."

"Or who - "

"Don't even go there," Rose interrupted.

"Sorry." He paused again. "Rose, can I ask you something?"

"Yeah, course you can."

"Have you and him ever…"

Her eyes widened. "No!"

He fixed her with a look. "Don't act all horrified. It's not that weird a question, 'cos it's obvious you want to."

"Mickey, we're just friends."

"Rose, you've practically admitted to me that you love him in the past. It's kind of written all over your face, anyway."

"Right, well, we haven't, and it doesn't look like we're gonna, so let's just leave it at that, yeah?"

"All right, all right. But, you know, if you told him, then - "

"Then what? Then I can be put out of misery for good by hearing his outright rejection? Then I can get over myself and realise that it's never gonna happen? Then I can realise that he'd never go for someone like me, especially not when there's someone like her around?"

"No, actually, I was gonna say, then you might just find he wants to, too. I know it's hard for you to believe, Rose, but my motive isn't to try and get you back by driving you away from the Doctor. I know that's never gonna happen. I actually just want you to be happy, you know?"

Rose looked at the floor. "Yeah. Sorry. I know." She looked back up at him, then gave him a hug. "Thanks, Mickey."

"It's all right. Blimey, I wish they'd hurry up and finish looking at that, though," Mickey said, glancing over to where Reinette and the Doctor were now perusing a statue. "I'm bloody starving."

Rose sighed, and pushed open the TARDIS doors. "Come on, let's go in. I'll cook you some chips."

He grinned. "Really?"

"Yeah. I'm pretty hungry, too. They can come meet us when they're done with their impromptu date looking at monuments."

"A sentence said with no trace of bitterness whatsoever," Mickey remarked, and followed her down the TARDIS corridor.

::

By the time the Doctor found them in the kitchen, Rose and Mickey had already finished eating.

"Reinette's just gone to freshen up," he said, plonking himself down at the table. "You ate without me?"

"There's still some chips left, help yourself," Rose said, gesturing to the bowl as she got up to leave.

"Where are you going?" asked the Doctor, as he snagged a chip.

"Just to my room, why?"

"Well, we've got a mystery to solve," he said, frowning at her. He got out his psychic paper and waved it pointedly.

"I was ready to solve that an hour ago, Doctor," Rose retorted, folding her arms at his tone. "You were the one who got distracted and forgot to even eat, let alone get to the adventure."

His eyes widened. "Reinette was asking about the history of the statues, and what they meant to the a'Loran culture, that's all. It would have been rude to ignore her questions."

"And you're never rude," Rose replied with a sarcastic smile.

Mickey winced at the tension in the air. He jumped up, mumbled some excuse about needing something in his room, and left them to it.

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked the Doctor, sounding bewildered.

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I just don't get why you're acting all superior with me, chiding me for wanting to go to my room for five minutes, when you were the one avoiding the S.O.S call in the first place."

"It was hardly an S.O.S call. It's not like it's an emergency, and besides, time machine."

"Well how was I to know it wasn't an emergency? You told me that we were gonna do a bit of world-saving."

"Yeah, well, it usually comes to that, doesn't it? But there's no rush when we've got the TARDIS at our disposal - "

"No rush?" Rose laughed. "No rush? We're usually rushing about all over the place, adventure to adventure."

"Thought you liked that!" He scraped his chair back and stood up, evidently fed up with looking up at her whilst she had a go at him. "Anyway, it isn't always like that. We do lots of downtime things."

"Yeah, but not these past couple of weeks we haven't. You've been whizzing us about all over the place for some reason. But now, what, you had a little taste of the slow path yesterday and fancied giving it ago?"

"What on Earth are you talking about?" he demanded, looking thoroughly confused about what her point actually was.

Rose heaved a sigh. "I just thought we had somewhere to be, that's all, and you're dragging your heels to look at stupid statues."

"They aren't stupid, Rose, they are actually very important and I would've thought that considering you have a statue yourself, you'd be appreciative of that."

"Doctor - "

"I mean, after all the hard work I put into it, you could be a little more gracious towards the discipline."

"Argh, you're so annoying."

"I'm so annoying? You're the one who has started a row for no apparent reason whatsoever!"

"Look, let's just go and see what this person who needs your help wants, yeah?" she mumbled, moving to leave. He moved quickly in front of her, blocking her exit. "What are you doing?" she snapped.

A slow smile suddenly came upon his face. "Rose."

"Yes?" she replied impatiently.

"Are you jealous?"

Rose spluttered, "Why would I be jealous?"

"I don't know, but I've just realised that you're acting an awful lot like you are."

"What? Don't be ridiculous. Why are you smiling? Shut up."

"She was just asking questions, Rose, that's all."

"I don't care. It's none of my business."

He raised his eyebrows. "Oh. Right then."

"What does that mean?"

"Nothing. Nothing at all," he smiled cheerfully. He moved to the side, so that the doorway was clear, and scooped up the bowl of remaining chips from that table, watching her as he put a couple in his mouth. She stayed rooted to the spot, and his eyebrows climbed higher. "Rose? Thought you wanted to go sort out this mystery? After you," he gestured to the door.

"I…" she murmured. Then she squinted at him. "Hold on, no. I'm not ready to leave this conversation just yet. Answer me one thing, yeah?"

"All right then. What is it?"

"Are you actually one of those gits who likes his friends getting jealous over who he spends the most time with?"

"What? No, of course not! Wait, are you saying you _are_ jealous?" He smiled again, and she whacked his arm.

"If you're not a git, then why are you smiling about it?" she demanded.

"I just find it amusing, that's all."

"Why's that? Because I'm just some stupid ape with stupid ape feelings?"

The Doctor's eyes widened. "No! Rose, honestly, tell me what's going on here because I am so confused."

"I just…it's - " She sighed. "Doctor?"

"Yes?"

"How long is she staying with us?"


	8. Chapter 8

His brow furrowed. "I don't know yet. Why, don't you like her?"

"Course I like her. She's really nice. I was just wondering, that's all."

"Well, I don't know. Until she wants to go home, I suppose."

"Which could be anytime between two days and fifty years," Rose muttered.

"Don't you want her here?" he asked, as he perched on the edge of the table.

Rose stared at him. "What?"

"Don't you want Reinette travelling with us?"

She forced out a laugh. "Of course I do. She's lovely."

"Then what's the matter?"

Rose's mouth opened and closed for a few moments. Then she said, nervously, "Doctor, when you were trapped in France, how long were you there?"

He squinted at her and she held her breath, fearing the worst. She didn't want to hear that he'd actually been gone ages. She didn't want to hear that she'd been wrong, and that the Doctor had actually known Reinette a lot longer than two days.

"Ooh, only about two hours. Well, two hours and thirteen minutes, actually. Why?"

She let out the breath she'd been holding. "Is that all?"

"Yep," he replied, popping the 'p.'

"And while you were stuck there for two hours and thirteen minutes, what did you do?" she blurted out, then immediately regretted it. "Actually, don't worry, don't answer that."

His eyes widened. "Why not?"

"I don't really want to know."

"What? Why?"

"Well, I mean…"

"Yes?"

"You'd — she'd — it'd be - "

"What?"

"It might not be something that you'd want to talk to me about," she finally got out.

The Doctor shrugged. "To be honest I mostly just stared out of the window whilst they finished the party."

"Yeah?"

"Mmm. Was thinking about how strange it was, looking up at the stars from the window of a palace." He shuddered. "Blimey, the thought of been stuck there for too long…"

Rose's breath caught. "Really?"

He quirked an eyebrow. "What, you thought I'd enjoy it?"

"Well, no. But you weren't exactly hesitant about it."

"Had to save her somehow."

"Yeah. And I guess you couldn't've used the TARDIS 'cos of timelines and all that."

"Yeah, but mainly because smashing through and shutting down the time window trapped the clockwork droids in the past. Leaving them with no purpose. To do that with the TARDIS might have been too dangerous. Plus, Arthur was right there, so."

"So, perfect opportunity to be a knight in shining armour on a white steed," Rose continued, smiling but saying the words through clenched teeth.

The Doctor chuckled. "It wasn't a chivalric romantic gesture, Rose."

"Sure it wasn't." She paused, then asked, "Doctor?"

"Yeah?"

"Did you even consider what would happen to me and Mickey, being stuck on a 51st century spaceship with no way home?"

He blew out a breath. "Well, I didn't exactly have a very detailed plan, but my general aim was either to hitch a ride with myself — an old me, I mean — and get him to take me to you. Or, you know," he added, smiling to himself. "If that failed, then I reckoned that you might do something."

"Me?" she asked in disbelief.

"Yeah." He looked up at her with something soft and proud in his eyes. Rose couldn't fathom it. "Help each other out, don't we, me and you, when we're stuck in a tight spot."

"But what could I have done?"

"I don't know," he said honestly. "But since the Gamestation you've had a bit of a connection with the TARDIS. Maybe you could've persuaded her to let you pilot her."

"But I haven't had any lessons in piloting the TARDIS."

"Never stopped you before, did it?" he pointed out. "Not that I'm encouraging to ever open up the heart of the TARDIS again, Rose," he added hurriedly. "You survived the exposure last time but who knows how much longer you could've held it in your head. You were brilliant and brave and beau- brilliant, but please don't do it again."

"I won't, don't worry," she said gently. Then she continued, "Doctor, when you asked me how long we'd waited, what would you have said if, I dunno, it'd turned out that we'd been there for days?"

He stood up properly, alarmed. "You weren't, were you?"

"No, god no. I didn't lie to you. I just mean, it could easily have happened…so what would you have said if it had been like that?"

He sighed in relief. "I would've — well. Well, I would've asked you if you were all right, and, um. Apologised, and all that."

Rose nodded absently, and the Doctor frowned. Slowly, he reached his hand out and touched her arm. "You don't actually think I enjoyed leaving you there, do you?"

"I…no, but…"

"But?" His fingers wrapped loosely around her wrist, his thumb stroking at her skin.

Her breathing sped up. She didn't know why he was suddenly touching her forearm like that, but she didn't want him to stop. "Well, you went through that window to be with Reinette, and I thought that maybe…"

"Rose?" he prompted.

God, had his eyes always been that dark? Was she imagining it? She swallowed thickly. "I thought that maybe…" she said again.

His other hand came up to rest at her hip, and her mouth dropped open in shock, until she realised that he was simply using the position of his hand there to pull her into a hug. He was then slipping both his arms around her waist, holding her firmly against him. "I will always come back for you," he murmured, his mouth near her temple. "Always."

Rose returned his hug gratefully, surprised by how much she felt like she needed it. She closed her eyes and pressed her forehead against his shoulder, and she felt him sigh into the top of her head. They stayed like that for a minute, just hugging near the kitchen doorway, and then Rose lifted her head to say something else. But when she looked at him she completely forgot what she wanted to say, and bit her lip nervously instead.

He was looking at her strangely. He was looking her in that way he looked at her every so often, like last week at the Emperor's ball. Then she saw him glance down. At first she thought he was trying to shake the moment away by avoiding her eyes, but then she realised that he was watching her chest heave up and down with her quickening breaths. So the romance novels were right about something. Huh.

"Doctor?" she murmured tentatively, feeling like they might be on the precipice of something.

His eyes returned to meet hers. "Yes?" he said back, his voice slightly hoarse.

They still had their arms wrapped tightly around one another, and there was barely any space between their bodies. She felt his fingers twitch slightly, as though he wanted to move them.

Spontaneously, Rose decided to take a chance. She reached up on tiptoes, her hands gripping the back of his jacket for support, and just as she was about to close the distance between their mouths, she heard movement behind her. She froze, her lips inches from his. She couldn't help but notice that he'd already parted his mouth, and had made no move to stop her advance.

"Oh! I'm so sorry, I…" said Reinette, who was now hovering just behind them in the doorway.

The Doctor slowly dragged his gaze from Rose's face to look over her shoulder. "That's all right."

"If I was interrupting anything - "

"You weren't. It's fine," he said. Rose instantly extricated her arms from around his waist and stepped away, forcing him to retract his arms from hers. She started fumbling with the plates on the table to clear up the food. She couldn't bear to look at Reinette in that moment, because she was sure that she was blushing, and she didn't want the other woman noticing how embarrassed she was.

"I just came by to ask if we were going anywhere else this evening."

Out of the corner of Rose's eye as she settled the plates by the sink, she saw the Doctor's hands clench and unclench repeatedly, as if he didn't know what to do with them.

"Um, yes, actually," he mumbled, sounding a bit perplexed. "We're — what were we going to do?"

Rose jerked suddenly as she realised he was asking her. Turning around, she eyed him in confusion. "The mysterious message for help, remember?" she said slowly.

"Oh! Yes, that's right!" he realised triumphantly. "Yes. I've had this message, you see, from some unknown source, and they need us to help them with something," he continued to Reinette.

"But how do you know to trust them, if you don't know who they are?"

He opened his mouth to respond, but realised he didn't have a suitable answer. "Um…"

Rose suggested, "More fun that way?"

"Yes, exactly," he nodded, starting to smile. "If they genuinely need help, then we can do that, but if they are trying to lure us into a trap, then chances are they are doing something terrible, so we'll foil their plans."

"That doesn't seem like a remotely safe idea," Reinette pointed out, quirking an eyebrow. "But then I suppose you do court danger." She flashed him a mysterious smile.

He laughed. "Yes, I do, rather, don't I?"

Rose made a show of looking at her watch, not liking the flirtatious turn their conversation was taking. "Give me a minute to get out of this dress," she said, making sure to gesture to it to catch the Doctor's attention. His eyes travelled slowly down the garment and she fought back a grin. "I'll meet you in the console room when we've landed."

She smiled at Reinette then brushed past her, and couldn't help but look back over her shoulder as she walked out of the room. Then she chuckled to herself, because the Doctor was staring after her with wide eyes. She hoped he was thinking about what she said. She hoped he was thinking about _helping_ her get out of her dress. Served him right, brushing off their almost-kissing-moment the way he'd done when Reinette had asked if she was interrupting anything.


	9. Chapter 9

Twenty minutes later, once Rose had changed and Reinette had had a bite to eat, they landed at their destination. All four of them wandered out of the TARDIS, not knowing what to expect. The coordinates had led them to London, Rose's Earth; but it was in the 23rd century rather than the 21st, so everyone was very curious as to who had requested his help. Neither the Doctor nor Rose could think of who it could be — they'd only been to this time once, and that had been Vienna, not London. And they certainly hadn't made any friends there — they'd had to blow up a rather nice theatre and were run out of town.

"I wonder where they are, then," murmured Rose, as they walked down a dimly-lit path. The Doctor was in front of her, and after hearing her speak, he slowed his pace so that she could catch up. Reinette and Mickey were behind them, having a conversation about their respective time periods. Rose thought she heard them mention the word 'hygiene,' so she suspected they were having an argument about the benefits of baths again. They'd already had a discussion about it earlier that day, and Rose had cringed in embarrassment with how tactless Mickey had been about it. He was a bit right, though; the eighteenth century view of what constituted cleanliness was vastly different from Rose and Mickey's.

"I don't know," the Doctor said quietly, reaching for her hand. "But we'd best be careful. You never know; Reinette could be right. We could be walking right into a trap."

"Most likely," Rose agreed. "Can I see the actual message?" The Doctor nodded and felt around in his pocket, before handing her the psychic paper. She flipped it open. "Er."

And her eyes, well, they are worth another sonnet all on their own

"What?" He peered at the psychic paper and she realised from his horrified expression that he'd erased the message by projecting a stray thought as he'd handed it to her. "Oh!" he squeaked, snatching it back. "Must be faulty…" He shook it a bit, then gave it back to her. "There, that's better." He cleared his throat sharply.

Rose eyed him suspiciously. He wasn't composing poems about Reinette in his head as they walked into possible danger, was he? He had just mentioned her, so maybe… Rose sighed, and looked at the proper message, just about able to see it in the limited light.

Doctor. Please call by; in need of assistance. Location: a#19/xOE/apptide~001w

She raised her eyebrows. "That," she said, pointing to the long stream of letters and numbers. "Is the TARDIS coordinate for 23rd century London?"

"When translated into Gallifreyan, yes," he said, nodding. "Specifically this building." He stopped walking and gestured in front of them at an abandoned shop.

"Someone hasn't had any customers for a while," Mickey remarked, as he and Reinette came to stand beside them.

"Hmm," pondered the Doctor, pushing open the door with ease. "Not locked. Curious."

They stepped inside and looked around the decrepit room. A spiral staircase leading to the floor above sat in the corner; the rest of the room was filled with old furniture and a shabby rug or two. There were a few doors lining a couple of the walls, leading off into the other parts of the building.

"Shouldn't we split up?" Mickey suggested. "Two of us take upstairs, two down?"

"Good idea," replied the Doctor. "You and Rose look around down here. If we don't find anything, we meet back in this exact spot in twenty minutes. Rose, ring me if you see anything suspicious."

Rose nodded. "All right. But Doctor - " she began, but he'd already started up the stairs, Reinette quickly following him.

Rose thought back to their moment in the kitchen, earlier. She'd been so sure that he was going to let her kiss him. And now he was retreating from her again. No, worse than that, he was retreating from her and practically walking towards Reinette. She knew it made sense for her to look around the place with Mickey — it wasn't like her and the Doctor could go off and leave the rookie travellers on their own. But there had been something in the way that the Doctor had barely looked at her as he'd said his instructions — it had made Rose feel uneasy. She sighed.

"So," mumbled Mickey under his breath, now that they were alone.

"Mmm?" Rose stepped forward, surveying the room. The shelves on the wall nearest to her were empty, save for the thick layer of dust coating every surface.

"You and the Doctor sounded like you were gonna have another argument, when I left the kitchen earlier."

"Hmph."

"How did that go, then?"

"Fine."

"Do you want to talk about - "

"Nope."

"Right." Mickey sighed. He opened and peered through one of the doors. "There's nothing around here. It's empty. Abandoned. Do you reckon that message thing was a hoax?"

"I'm not sure - " Rose started, then stopped suddenly, her eyes widening.

She'd been looking at an old poster, one that reached from ceiling to floor, and noticed that it was peeling away from the wall. She gave it a tug, and as it came down it exposed another door.

"Well," murmured Mickey.

Rose's brow furrowed and she opened the door. She walked through the small corridor it revealed, Mickey hot on her heels. She shushed him as he questioned her tip-toeing movements. "I thought I heard — there! Did you hear that? Sounded like it was coming from the other side of that wall." She turned the corner and there was a bolted door just waiting to be unbolted. "Aha..." She reached forwards.

"Don't!" hissed Mickey.

"Why not? There's definitely someone in there."

"Exactly! They could be ready and waiting to shoot us or something! Bloody maze in here, all those doors!"

Rose rolled her eyes and knocked on the door. "Hello? Anyone in there?"

The footsteps that she'd heard sped up, sounding closer to the door. The person inside the room replied cheerfully, "Rose! I knew you'd come," and started unfastening the locks that were apparently on the other side.

"Do I know you?" Rose asked, and then a man opened the door and grinned at her.

"You look so young!" the man exclaimed, staring at Rose with wide eyes.

Rose arched an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"Oh Rose," he said quickly, "You have to believe me, you meet me in the future. We're friends, I promise you, we just have met yet from your perspective."

Mickey eyed him suspiciously. "How do we know to trust you?"

The man's shoulders deflated. "I don't know. I'm sorry, but I swear Rose and I are friends."

"All right then," Rose said briskly. "What's your name, anyway?"

"Andrew Rey, at your service," he grinned, holding his hand out.

She shook it warily. "And when you say that I look young…" She narrowed her eyes. "How old am I, exactly, when I meet you?"

"Oooh, mid-thirties, something like that," he answered. "Don't worry, you don't change that much. But your hair's a slightly different colour and this you has less - " he cut off abruptly.

"Less what?"

"I think he was gonna say less wrinkles," Mickey chuckled quietly.

"Not wrinkles, just — laughter lines," Andrew corrected. He coughed awkwardly.

"Sure," Rose laughed. "Okay then. What's the problem, anyway? Why did you message the Doctor asking for help?"

"It's my sister. She's being hunted by this dodgy bloke — he's an alien, not sure what kind as he's not the sort to stop and chat, but he's caught her scent and he's after her."

"You're saying these words but you don't sound very scared," Rose pointed out.

"That's 'cos I know what to do to help her. Or rather, I know that the Doctor will know what to do. There's this plant called the Keptalisus, and we need to extract something from it that she can apply to her skin to put the alien off the scent until we can get rid of him."

"And where's this plant?"

"It's found in this area of conserved woodland, apparently, about forty-five miles North of London. I need the Doctor's help to locate it."

"Sounds simple enough. Leave the alien to us, though. The Doctor probably wouldn't like your definition of 'getting rid.'"

Andrew nodded. "Deal."

Rose rang the Doctor and told them where they were. He and Reinette soon met up with them.

"Who's this fellow, then?" he asked, upon seeing Andrew.

"Andrew Rey," Rose answered quickly. "He needs our help finding a plant in some woods. We know him in the future, Doctor."

Andrew stepped forward and smiled at the Time Lord. "I'm a friend you haven't met yet. It's good to see you." He looked over the Doctor's shoulder and saw Reinette, frowning slightly in confusion.

"Right, well, I presume Rose believes you, so it's nice to meet you," the Doctor said brightly. He then introduced Andrew to Reinette, before turning to Rose and murmuring, "He to be trusted?"

"For now, I think so, yeah," she smiled. She glanced over at Andrew approvingly. "Instinct and all that."

When she looked back at the Doctor, he was smiling tightly. "Right then. Let's all sit down and have a chat." He shrugged off his coat.

Andrew explained to the Doctor what he had told Rose. He also went into detail about the Hunter, as he'd taken to calling him.

"From what you've described, he sounds like a Meligui."

"A what?"

"A Meligui. They're a race from the planet Hendatron. Solitary predators who use their excellent sense of smell to track someone who's, er, taken their fancy."

Andrew shuddered. "Why my sister?"

"It's hard to say. Wrong place, wrong time, most likely. They only hunt one person at a time. Their natural prey are Falitans. Humans are a…" He cleared his throat. "A luxury dish, so to speak."

"But we can get rid of him though, right?"

"We'll sort this out, yes."

"I can't let my sister get — get - " He paused, breathing roughly. "How do they kill?"

The Doctor shook his head. "It doesn't matter, because I won't let it happen."

"How do they kill?" Andrew persisted.

The Time Lord sighed, and said quietly, "With their teeth."

Reinette clutched onto Mickey's sleeve, and Rose bit her lip. Andrew looked horrified.

"He doesn't even have…I mean, his teeth — he looks human, practically."

"Retractable fangs?" queried Mickey.

"Sort of. Look, let's not think about that at the moment. Time's of the essence, so we'd better get going."

Andrew nodded in agreement, but there were tears in his eyes. "I can't let anything happen to her. She's all I have."

"It's all right," said Rose. She offered him a warm smile. "We can help you."

"Thank you, Rose," Andrew said, with feeling. He gripped onto her hands and squeezed. "You've no idea what this means to me."

The Doctor's brow furrowed, and he interrupted swiftly, "Like I said, time's of the essence. Let's not dawdle."

"Oh," Andrew murmured, breaking his gaze from Rose. "There's a stop we have to make, first, to pick up my sister. I don't want her to be without me for too long."

"Well she's on her own now," Mickey pointed out.

"She's got a few friends there with her. I had to leave her for a bit to come meet you. It wasn't safe for you to land the TARDIS at our house because of something complicated you tell me in the future about a fault line we live on. Something about paradoxes and time-streams. Anyway, it's on the other side of town. We'll have to get the bus."

"The bus," the Doctor repeated, unimpressed.

"What, you too high and mighty for one of them?" Rose asked, quirking an eyebrow.

His eyes widened. "No, course not. I just thought that Andrew here might have a car or something, which would get us there a lot quicker."

"No, I don't have a car," said Andrew. He flashed Rose a smile. "I'm good for the environment." Then he winked at her, and Rose laughed. She chanced a look up at the Doctor, whose jaw was clenched tight. Interesting.

"Yes, well, that's not important right now," the Doctor muttered, pulling his coat back on. "Let's go."


	10. Chapter 10

Once they had picked up Andrew’s sister, Lola, the six of them hired a large and rather swish taxi to drop them off at the woods. It was the quickest way of doing it other than using the TARDIS, which they couldn’t risk doing in case the Doctor made a mistake in the time coordinates. He made a big show of insisting that he’d never make a mistake like that, but Rose shot him a disbelieving look and he relented. They told the driver of the taxi that he’d get a bonus wad of cash if he parked up and waited for them. He agreed.

At the woods, they decided it was best that they all stick together. No wandering off, not today, just in case the Meligui had followed Lola’s scent there. The Doctor used his sonic to track down the Keptalisus plant; it was a long process, as he had to scan each area of flora that they came across, but eventually he found a patch of the plant underneath a couple of oak trees.

Lola held out the bag she’d brought with her. “Thought we could put it all in here, to take back.”

“Good idea,” said the Doctor.

They gathered up as much as they could, and the Doctor explained that they would have to head back to the TARDIS before he could extract what was needed to protect Lola.

They made their way back to the waiting taxi on the edge of the woods. As they walked, Rose hung back from the Doctor and Reinette a little, preferring to talk to Andrew than listen to their conversation.

“I appreciate you lot helping us with this,” Andrew said to her.

She smiled. “It’s no problem, really.”

“Hope this works.”

“It will. The Doctor said that the Meligui are allergic to whatever it is in this plant. Fiercely allergic. He won’t risk going too near her after the Doctor’s made up the perfume for her to wear.”

“And what do we do after that?”

Rose shrugged. “Well it sounds like the alien will lurk around at a safe distance, right? So whilst we know that he won’t be able to hurt Lola, he’ll still be around. We can get him then. Convince him to go back to where he’s come from, or something.”

“Yeah,” Andrew nodded gratefully. His eyes went to Lola, who was walking ahead with Mickey. “That — that sounds like an all right plan.”

“Good. So, can I ask you something?”

He chuckled. “You want to know about the future.”

“No! No…not as such, I mean…you can’t tell me anything. But…” She looked forwards, watching the Doctor help Reinette over a fallen tree. She sighed.

“You and him, you’re very different,” Andrew remarked suddenly.

Rose bristled. “In what way? Good or bad different?”

“Just…different. When I know you, you two are more…” He smiled to himself. “In sync, I guess.”

“We are in sync,” she protested.

“In some ways, yeah, but…” he trailed off, and Rose knew she really, really shouldn’t press him for information about their future, so she eventually let it drop. She was just glad that she was apparently still travelling with him. “Who is she, anyway?” he asked.

“The Doctor introduced you, didn’t he?”

“Yeah, but what’s she like, and why’s she with you?”

“She’s…” Rose glanced over at the woman in question. “She’s really clever, and beautiful, and she has all this…charisma, you know? She’s…really, really refined. Proper classy.” She laughed, then, and added in a cheery voice, “Exact opposite of me, eh?”

Andrew frowned, and placed his hand over hers, gripping it loosely and swinging it between them as they walked. “Don’t be daft,” he said softly. “For what it’s worth, I think you’re wonderful.”

She stared at him for a few moments, biting her lip nervously. “Do you?”

They stopped walking. Andrew smiled slowly at her, and gave her hand a squeeze. “I really do, Rose. I’ve always thought so. I never tell you that in the future, though, when you know me properly.”

“Why not?” Something in the way he was looking at her made her breath catch.

He looked at the ground, his grin turning rueful. Chuckling quietly, he said, “Let’s just say…there’s never a good time. You…” He met her eyes again. “I really shouldn’t say this. But I’m gonna. I’ll never have another chance to, after all.”

“Okay,” she breathed out roughly.

“It’s never — the same, for you. I…” His cheeks went a bit pink. “I think you are the most beautiful, warm person I know and I care for you dearly, but to you, we’re just friends, and that’s okay, because you’re happy.”

Rose blinked quickly. “Wait, I…you…”

He swallowed hard, but somehow kept the grin on his face. “You’re with someone else, and you’re happier with them than I could ever make you. So I never tell you, but I think you know. And now I know why you know; because I just told you. God, I’m a bit of an idiot. Just — you can’t ever tell me that I told you that. Not only ‘cos of timelines, but…” He laughed softly. “Well, you know, dignity, and all that.”

She nodded, and on impulse, grabbed him into a hug. “But we’re good friends?”

“Oh, we’re great friends, Rose,” he assured her, squeezing her tight. “The greatest.”

They released one another and started walking again. She realised with a start that the Doctor had paused and was staring at them, but she avoided his gaze and he immediately resumed his brisk pace.

::

The taxi driver had dutifully waited for them, and soon they were on their way back into town. The Doctor gave the driver directions to where the TARDIS was parked.

Once the journey was over and they had paid the taxi driver, Rose took a few steps away from the rest of the group, gesturing for Andrew to follow her. She wanted to talk to him before they all went inside the TARDIS; there had been a bit of a tense atmosphere in the taxi, with the Doctor absurdly deciding to sit in between her and Andrew and butting in every time the other man tried to say something to her, and she felt the need to apologise for the Doctor’s strange behaviour. Before she could say a word, however, she tripped over a rubbish bag she hadn’t noticed on the ground behind her, and Andrew reached out to steady her; on her other side the Doctor did the same. When she looked at the Time Lord, she saw him glaring at the other man, and it clicked. The reason he’d been acting so oddly. He was jealous. What a petty, hypocritical idiot of a man. Rose yanked her arm away from him and ignored the hurt look in his eyes.

“I’ll go and start the extraction process,” the Doctor said, swallowing hard. “You lot can wait in the console room, it’s fine.” With that, he bounded into the TARDIS.

“I’m sorry about him,” said Rose quietly.

“I’ve never seen him like that,” Andrew told her, raising his eyebrows. “He’s always come across as a friendly chap.”

“He is, usually. I dunno what’s wrong with him.” She glanced down at Andrew’s hand, which was still on her elbow.

He pulled back when he saw her notice, and chuckled to himself. “Oh I think I do,” he murmured. Rose gave a half shrug.

Mickey, Lola and Reinette had already entered the TARDIS, so Rose tilted her head towards the blue box. “Shall we?”

“Sure, lead the way!” 

::

Confronting the Meligui wasn’t as difficult as Rose initially expected. With Lola safe and sound inside her house, the perfume the Doctor had made for her to wear working effectively to bar the creature from entering, the Doctor, Rose, Andrew and Mickey faced him down several metres down the road. Reinette was in the house with Lola, keeping her company.

“We know what you are,” said the Doctor calmly.

The Meligui identified himself as Ridul and hissed at them, “The human is my prey, it’s nothing personal. She just seems so…tasty.”

Andrew flinched, and Rose stayed him with a hand on his shoulder. “But it’s not fair,” she said. “You can’t just latch onto her and decide to kill her, it’s not right.”

“I don’t conform to your pesky human morals,” Ridul sighed. “They do get in the way.”

“Well you can’t have her now,” replied the Doctor firmly. “Not even if we let you, which we are not going to do. She’s contaminated. You’ll get a nasty reaction if you try to sink your teeth into her.”

Rose rolled her eyes at his phrasing, squeezing Andrew’s shoulder in support.

The Doctor slowly advanced on the Meligui, gesturing for Mickey to do so too. “This is what’s going to happen,” he said. “You are going to let us take you home, far away from here, and away from this young woman who you cannot consume. Okay?”

“I don’t think that is going to happen,” said Ridul, shaking his head almost apologetically. “See, I like it here. I might not be able to have the Lola human, but I can retreat and find someone else.”

“No,” said the Doctor. “I can’t let you do that.”

Ridul flashed his teeth and them and started stepping backwards. “You are going to have to, I’m afraid.”

Mickey had the foresight to hurl himself at the Meligui before he had a chance to break into a run. Pinning him down to the ground, Mickey looked up and met the Doctor’s eyes as the Time Lord sonicked a pair of handcuffs around their captive. They smiled at each other in accomplishment and dragged a spluttering Ridul to his feet, walking him back over to Andrew and Rose.

Rose blinked at the scene before her. It had all happened so fast. And where had he gotten those handcuffs from? 

::

Rose entered the house to tell Lola and Reinette the good news.

“You don’t have to worry now, Lola,” Rose said, wrapping her arm around her shoulders in a brief, reassuring hug. “The Doctor and my friend Mickey are gonna take him back to the TARDIS and get him secure for when we take him back to his home planet. He’ll probably get into trouble back there for contravening their rules about unauthorised hunting on a Level 5 planet or something, so the Doctor says. So he won’t go unpunished. Probably a prison sentence in for him.”

“I’m glad you did this, that you helped us,” said Lola. “I was so worried that Andrew would get killed or something, in some foolish attempt to take him on all on his own.”

“The Doctor likes to avert such methods,” said Reinette. Rose glanced at her and Reinette shrugged. “I saw in his mind that he was, at heart, somewhat of a — what is that word? Ah yes, a pacifist.”

Rose swallowed and nodded. “Right. Anyway, we should head off. Your brother’s outside, getting himself together. I think he’s a bit shaken up by it all, but he’s very relieved that you’re safe,” she smiled.

“Thank you,” Lola said. “All of you. Say goodbye to the Doctor and Mickey for me.”

“We will,” answered Reinette.

“Bye, Lola,” said Rose

“Goodbye.”

::

“The Doctor and Mickey are already on their way back with Ridul,” said Andrew to Rose and Reinette, when they met him in the hallway. “Thank you for taking care of this whole thing. I’m very grateful.”

“That’s what friends are for,” said Rose with a grin, pulling him into a hug. “I’ll see you sometime.”

“I hope you’re looking forward to it,” chuckled Andrew.

“I am.”

“Farewell for now, Rose.” He dipped his head. “Reinette.” Then, he went into the other room to find his sister.

Reinette was quiet on the trip back to the TARDIS with Rose. They grabbed a taxi back to save walking across town, and Rose kept glancing at her across the backseat as the other woman fiddled with her hands in a nervous manner that Rose was not used to seeing Reinette exhibit.

“Are you all right?” Rose asked softly, after a while of silence.

“Yes,” Reinette breathed out, pasting a smile onto her face. “Oh, I’m quite fine. Quite fine.”

“Thanks for looking out for Lola while we were outside, by the way.”

“My pleasure.”

The awkward silence descended again.

Rose coughed and started, “It’s not always like this - ”

“The Doctor is worth the monsters,” Reinette said firmly, nodding to herself as though her repeating the phrase was a mantra she kept telling herself.

Rose shut up after that, and they went the rest of the journey without saying another word.

::

When Reinette and Rose exited the taxi, the Doctor was striding down the alleyway towards them. “Ridul’s all tied up with Mickey standing guard,” he explained. “We’ll take him back to his home planet and, like I said earlier, hopefully they will put him on trial.”

“Good,” Rose said, nodding. “So, should we - ”

“Just want to have a quick word with you, Rose. Reinette, do you want to go inside?”

“I…”

“Please?”

“Very well,” answered Reinette with a frown. She walked down to the TARDIS and closed the doors behind her without looking back.

“What’s up?” asked Rose, pushing a strand of her hair behind her ear.

“What did Andrew say to you?” he said, jumping straight in.

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“You know exactly what I mean. He shouldn’t have said anything about the future, Rose. You two might be ‘friends’ then, but it’s still not on. It could cause a - ”

“Doctor, he didn’t tell me anything. And I didn’t ask him to tell me anything. Just calm down, yeah? I know the risks, I’m not an idiot.”

“Right. But it certainly looked as though - ”

“As though what?”

“As though you — I don’t know.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Nothing,” he snapped. “It doesn’t matter.”

“Oh my god, what is wrong with you,” she said, shaking her head. “Oh, and I’ve got a bone to pick with you by the way.”

“What’s that?” he huffed.

“You could’ve been a bit more sensitive, you know. You going on at Ridul about not wanting to sink his teeth into Lola whilst Andrew was _standing right there._ Poor bloke was shaking, almost thought he’d dive in and strangle Ridul. Could’ve made a right mess of things.”

“And that’s my fault?”

“Well, you didn’t need to be so dismissive with what you were saying. Sometimes giving less graphic details is best, Doctor.”

“Of course, Andrew not being able to keep his temper in check has to be because of something I said,” he grumbled.

“Oi, you’d be hard pressed to keep your temper if some hunter with retractable fangs was after someone you cared about!”

“Andrew knew I was sorting it all out, he should’ve stayed in the house with his sister if he didn’t think he could face that Meligui.” He paused, turning away as if to go back to the TARDIS, and then murmured, “Then again, suppose expecting him to leave your side for one solitary second was pretty much impossible.”

“Ooh, who pressed all your buttons?” Rose muttered under her breath.

He whirled around so quickly that she backed up against the alley wall. He closed the distance between them and stared down at her fiercely. “What do you want me to say?” he demanded.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about - ” she began, but he slammed his hands down either side of her head, boxing her in. Her heart rate sped up. She wasn’t scared, could never be scared of him. No, what she was feeling right then was something more like anticipation.

“What do you want me to say?” he repeated.

Rose let her eyes wander over him for a moment before she replied, “I want you to admit that you’re jealous.”

“Why would I be jealous?”

“I dunno,” she snorted. “But you were sure acting like it back there with Andrew.”

“There was something — something about him I didn’t take to. That’s all,” he bit out firmly.

“Right,” Rose said slowly. “So that’s why anytime he looked at me you started growling.”

“I did not growl,” he growled. There was barely any space between them, now. Their chests were almost touching, though he was very overtly keeping his hips several inches from hers. Rose wondered if, in those pinstriped trousers of his, he was hard. His eyes were certainly darker than she’d ever seen them.

“You so did,” she countered, and some sudden burst of courage enabled her to grab onto his jacket lapels. She yanked him closer. “So what’s your problem?”

Rose watched his breaths came in short puffs, watched his arms tremble with the strain of leaning against the wall, watched his eyes dart across her face.

“I wasn’t jealous,” the Doctor mumbled half-heartedly. His head was tilting towards hers, and she gripped his lapels tighter. “I…”

His lips were so close to hers. Both of them had parted their mouths, and it was as though they were inhaling and exhaling each other’s air. Rose was eighty-nine per cent sure that he would be kissing her against the wall within the next ten seconds.

Unfortunately, it was the remaining eleven per cent, the bit that knew him too well, which was proved correct.

Just as he swayed even closer towards her, something flickered and shut down in his eyes. “We should…” he trailed off for a second, cleared his throat, and continued, “We should go. Back to the TARDIS. To — to take care of things. With Ridul, I mean.”

Rose released his lapels. “Right. Yeah,” she replied. He took a few steps back, and ran a hand through his hair. “Let’s just…”

“Yes,” he agreed, and made for the TARDIS, his pace brisk.


	11. Chapter 11

After taking Ridul back to his home planet and ensuring he wasn’t let off lightly for his attempts, the Doctor retreated to his bedroom and left the others to amuse themselves.

"Where’s he gone, anyway?" asked Mickey, as they convened in the galley for some food.

"He’s sulking," sniffed Rose, pouring out their tea. "Just leave him."

"Is he – should we not see if he is - " started Reinette.

"No."

Reinette raised her eyebrows. “Oh.”

Opening a few cupboards and banging them closed again, Rose retrieved the ingredients for dinner, and lined them up on the counter. “There you go. Should be enough stuff there to make a decent couple of omelettes. See you later,” she said, grabbing her mug and making for the door.

Mickey and Reinette glanced at each other awkwardly. “Is she…?” Reinette began.

"Dunno," said Mickey, who then looked sternly at the eggs, as if willing them to turn into dinner all on their own. "Do you want to make dinner?"

"Certainly not," Reinette answered. "I’m not feeling very hungry anyway. I think I might visit the library. Good evening, Mickey."

She left the room, and Mickey scratched at his jaw. “Something I said?” he thought, wondering why everyone was so keen to be on their own. He sighed, and turned to the food, resigning himself to dining alone.

::

When Reinette entered the library, she almost retreated. Rose was sitting on the sofa sipping at her tea, and it had been clear just now that she’d wanted to be on her own, so Reinette contemplated retiring to her own room and leaving the other woman to it.

Then, Rose turned her head, and smiled briefly. “It’s all right, you can come in. Don’t mind me. I’m just…thinking.”

Reinette stepped over to her and sat down beside her. “Are you okay?”

"Yeah," Rose sighed, rubbing a hand across her face. "Just tired."

"I see." There was a pause. Then, "How old are you, Rose?"

"Nearly twenty."

Reinette smiled. “I was married at your age, you know.”

Rose’s eyes widened, and she put her mug on the coffee table, turning towards Reinette. “What? Really?”

"Yes. To Charles-Guillaume. We had a child together. But his father and Louis, they arranged for me to go to court. It was…he never forgave me for that. Louis arranged our separation. And there it was: Charles, cuckolded." She let out a small sigh. "I didn’t receive much good publicity, as you would say, for that.”

"Oh my god."

"Mmm."

"But did you love him? Charles?"

"I…he loved me. I admit, I’d rather set my sights a little higher."

"Right," Rose nodded. "So…what happened to him?"

"Well, as far as I know he is in Paris impregnating his mistress," Reinette shrugged.

"Ah."

"Yes."

"And your child?"

"A daughter," Reinette answered, and swallowed hard. "Fanfan. That’s what we called her." She smiled to herself. "Her real name was Alexandrine-Jeanne. Oh, she was beautiful."

"…was?" Rose murmured tentatively.

Reinette reached for Rose’s hand, patting it almost fondly. “She fell ill.”

"I’m sorry," whispered Rose, squeezing Reinette’s fingers in comfort. "How long ago?"

"Oh, a few years now," Reinette answered vaguely. "She was only ten. Well, not even that; she hadn’t yet had her tenth birthday. She died, and – and my…father, oh, he doted on her. He died just eleven days later. It was very difficult. It is very difficult.” She looked down, blinking quickly.

"I’m so, so sorry," Rose said. She went to draw her into a hug, but hesitated. "Is this – would you like a hug?"

Reinette chuckled and brushed away her tears. “Yes, I rather think I would.”

Rose smiled sympathetically and embraced Reinette, feeling for the other woman. She hadn’t realised quite how tough Reinette had had it in her life. It put Rose’s problems into perspective, really, and she decided to stop feeling sorry for herself. “You must miss them very much.”

"Yes. Well. No, I - I didn’t – I didn’t see her often, and then, when it mattered, when I should have gone to her when she was ill, I…I was needed at court. I couldn’t go to her. And so I missed those last few precious moments I could have had. And I have not been blessed with another child since."

Rose drew back and met Reinette’s gaze. “It’s not your fault. It wasn’t your fault,” she said firmly.

Reinette nodded. “Thank you, Rose. You are a dear child.”

Rose offered her a small smile. She didn’t appreciate being called a child – again – especially seeing as Reinette had said herself that she had been married at Rose’s age. But Reinette was upset, so she didn’t say anything.

"I feel better now. Thank you," Reinette said, smiling at Rose warmly.

"No problem."

"I do love Louis," she said next, abruptly. "I know it seems like I left him to come here without a second thought, but…"

"It’s okay. I understand, believe me. Speaking of Louis, how does it all work, I mean, with his…wife, and everything? If you don’t mind me asking. I’m not really up to speed on court life and all that."

"His Queen, Marie – I knew that to ease his guilt I must make friends with her, or at least be cordial."

"That must have been a bit awkward, though," suggested Rose. "I mean, did she just accept the fact that her husband had another woman in his life?"

"Not just one other woman," Reinette reminded Rose. "Although, she did say that if it had to be anyone, she’d rather it were me. So I suppose she likes me above the others."

"Yeah."

Reinette felt like she had said all she could on the matter, at least for now. She stifled a yawn, suddenly feeling overcome with exhaustion. She was not used to Rose and the Doctor’s way of life. “And now I must retire, Rose, for I am very tired. Goodnight.”

"Night."

Rose couldn’t help but think about that for some time once Reinette had gone to bed. Reinette was evidently used to the idea of more than one woman being with one man. She wondered if that was why Reinette hadn’t said anything regarding the Doctor. Either she assumed that the Doctor would never be like that with Rose, or she assumed they were like that, and simply wasn’t bothered. Either way, she doubted the Doctor had clarified it for her.

She heaved a sigh and switched on the telly that the TARDIS had recently installed above the fireplace, hoping to lose herself in a film. She was using up far too much time thinking about what the hell was going on between the Doctor and Reinette, these days. Their conversations were always too quiet for Rose to eavesdrop on, and they must have mastered the art of secrecy or discreetness, for she never saw them travelling back and forth from each other’s rooms.

::

She woke up to the Doctor gently shaking her shoulder. She’d fallen asleep on the sofa whilst watching her film, and as she blinked her eyes open to find the Time Lord peering at her curiously, she wished, not for the first time, that she was waking up to him staring at her after a night spent in his arms.

Shaking those thoughts aside, she sat up and wiped at the side of her mouth. The Doctor chuckled. “Shut up,” she said affectionately, through a yawn, as she smacked his arm. “Can’t help it.”

"No need to worry, Rose Tyler, lots of humans drool in their sleep," he said brightly, then settled into the seat next to her. "Just wanted to wake you up so that you could catch the ending. I know you love this bit," he said, casually wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

"You seem cheery," Rose muttered, arching an eyebrow.

"Why wouldn’t I be?"

She heaved a sigh. “Well you weren’t in the best mood, earlier.”

"I’m fine!"

"Yeah. So that’s why you went and locked yourself in your room without saying a word to us."

He huffed and mumbled, “Sorry.”

"Ooh what’s that? An actual apology?" Rose mock-gasped.

"Oh shh, watch your film," he said, his lips twitching.

"We’re not gonna talk about earlier, then?" she surmised.

"What is there to talk about?" he responded, not looking at her.

"Right. Of course. Silly me," she huffed. Nevertheless, Rose couldn’t resist snuggling into his embrace, just a little. She was sort of annoyed at herself for it, but she didn’t have the energy to try to resist the temptation of being close to him, not when he was offering her this, albeit small, piece of affection.

A few minutes passed in silence.

"Now can I go back to sleep?" she asked, yawning again as the credits rolled.

The Doctor looked a bit disappointed but nodded. “Of course.”

Rose closed her eyes.

"What, here?" the Doctor asked.

"Too tired to move."

"Oh. Fair enough."

"That all right?"

"Course it is. Just don’t want you getting a stiff neck."

"Well once you get up I can stretch out on the whole sofa."

"But I’m staying."

"What?"

"I’m watching the sequel," he sniffed, eyes on the screen as the next film started playing.

"But…"

"You can still lie down," he said, still not looking at her. "You can put your legs across my lap, I don’t mind."

Rose couldn’t quite believe how casual he was being about this, but she wasn’t about to argue with him when she felt this exhausted, no matter how strange his behaviour was, especially in light of what happened – well, what didn’t happen – between them earlier in the alley. “All right then,” she mumbled, and swung her legs up to the sofa, laying them across his lap like he’d suggested, so that her thighs were pressing onto his. She shifted down to pillow her head on a cushion, and closed her eyes again.

"Goodnight, Rose."

"Night, Doctor."

After another few moments of silence, apart from the theme music playing in the background, the Doctor murmured, “Here. So you don’t get cold,” and she felt him tuck in his jacket around her. She hadn’t even realised he’d taken it off. She didn’t let on that she was still awake, but snuggled into the jacket as though deep in sleep. She heard the Doctor’s gentle chuckle again, and felt his fingers trail across her cheek, brushing several strands of her hair away from her face.

When Rose woke up the following morning, he was gone, but his jacket was still draped across her.


	12. Chapter 12

The following day passed by in a flurry of activity as the Doctor took his friends to a lively, bustling trade city on the planet Yovo Three. They travelled around the markets and looked in on a couple of museums, the Time Lord playing tour guide and no one mentioning the events of the day before.

By the time they returned to the TARDIS and had eaten, Rose fancied some downtime. As the four of them cleared up the galley, the Doctor and Mickey promptly engaged themselves in a debate over the inaccuracies of Star Wars, and whether or not it was superior to Star Trek. It was very annoying, particularly as they were ignoring all Rose’s points. Reinette looked even more frustrated, as she hadn’t a clue what they were discussing anyway.

Rose glanced at Reinette as she put the plates she’d been drying back in the cupboard. “Fancy some me-and-you time, without the boys?”

"Yes please," Reinette replied, nodding firmly.

The Doctor pouted and Mickey huffed, and the two women giggled as they left them to their argument.

::

Rose held up a bottle. “This, my friend, is vodka. The perfect addition to our girls’ night.”

"It looks like water."

Rose grinned. “Doesn’t taste like it.”

Within an hour, Rose and Reinette were well on their way to getting roaring drunk, which was pretty hilarious from Rose’s point of view. She’d never seen Reinette let her hair down like this; it was brilliant.

Rose felt way more relaxed talking to her like this, too, and vice versa. They went through a variety of topics, and considering that they were from such different time periods, it was quite surprising how much they were able to talk about together. But then, at the very foundations of their lives, Rose supposed they weren’t as different as you’d think. Both of them had been raised primarily by their mothers, and both of them had aimed to be more than what their economic position had held in store for them.

Soon, the conversation wandered into a very specific category: men. Reinette told Rose, in great detail thanks to the alcohol she was consuming, all about her relationship with Louis, and what they had got up to before she’d had to stop having sex with him. Rose was constantly in fits of giggles, and they both kept spilling things and knocking things over in their hysterics.

"I can’t believe it," Rose gasped out at one point. "Blimey, never knew the 1700s were so raunchy.”

Reinette giggled. “Does that mean - ” She waggled her eyebrows.

"Yep," Rose nodded, and they dissolved into laughter again.

After a while, though, the tone of the conversation switched slightly. Still talking about Louis, but in a much more wistful way, Reinette told Rose, “There’s this staircase to my chambers – a secret one. He used to use it to come and visit me, and I him. It was rather exciting, actually.”

Rose couldn’t help but smile. “I bet it was! I love a secret romance in a story. You must’ve been living it, which, I must say, is very cool.”

"Cool?" Reinette’s brow furrowed.

"It’s a positive thing meaning…um, well, amazing? Fantastic? I dunno how you would phrase it in your time, really. But trust me. You are a very cool woman. I mean look at what you did! You’re brilliant. No wonder the Doctor’s fascinated with you."

That last bit had slipped out without her meaning to; she really hadn’t wanted to bring up the Time Lord this evening, and so far they hadn’t. But now…

"Well, I…" Reinette replied, but her cheeks went a bit pink.

Rose downed another gulp of her vodka and orange. “Can I ask you something personal? Seeing as we’ve been talking so openly tonight.”

Reinette considered that a moment, then nodded. “Of course.”

"Um…" Rose fiddled with her earring for a second, and sipped at her drink again for another burst of courage. "Well." She cleared her throat. "Have you and the Doctor…?" She widened her eyes meaningfully.

Reinette laughed. “No, dear.”

"Oh."

"You thought we had?"

"I wasn’t sure. Do you think - "

"Rose?" Reinette prompted, when Rose cut herself off.

"Er, well. Do you think you will? I mean, the whole abstaining-from-sex thing, was that just with Louis, or – or - "

"I don’t think it would be appropriate to discuss that."

Rose frowned, and her heart picked up speed a bit. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

"Well, I…I don’t know, is the answer. It feels wrong to discuss it when I haven’t even discussed it with him."

Something caught in Rose’s throat, and she felt like that one statement had instantly sobered her up. “So it’s on the cards, then.”

"As I said, I don’t know. We haven’t discussed it. He never mentions anything like that, and I am content at the moment to leave things be."

"But what…what are things like at the moment?" Rose asked carefully. "I mean, do you…kiss, or…?"

"No. We haven’t kissed since France."

"But do you ever…"

"Ever what?"

"Like, sleep in the same bed, or anything?"

"Rose, I don’t even know where his bedroom is. Nothing so intimate has happened. I only ever see him when you are there, too, so I do not know why you think there have been secret meetings or something. He never shares anything personal with me. I do not know how he sees me, or whether there is the potential for more. I have only been here a few days. I strived for years to get to court; I have the patience of a Saint. I am not worried."

Rose didn’t quite know what to make of her answer. On the one hand, she was glad – relieved – to hear that they hadn’t been meeting up in secret and doing…things. On the other hand, the very fact that Reinette was willing to be patient and wait and see what happened implied there was a potential crisis ahead for Rose’s heart.

Conflicted, Rose just smiled in response, and then diverted the conversation away from the Doctor, hoping to do so for the rest of the evening.

::

"Rose. Rose. Rose,” called the Doctor’s voice persistently.

Rose rolled over in bed to find him staring down at her with a stern expression. “What?” she grumbled, rubbing at her eyes tiredly. Blimey, her head was throbbing. She swore to herself in that moment that she’d never get that sloshed again, not if this headache was the consequence.

"What did you do to Reinette?"

"What?"

He huffed, and sat on the edge of the bed. “What were you both drinking last night?”

"Lambrini."

He eyed her sceptically.

"Fine, I found some vodka, we had a few with orange juice. What’s the problem?"

"Rose, that was hypervodka. Far stronger than normal vodka, which is strong enough as it is. Anyway, it was left over from that night in the kitchen with Jack, remember?"

"Ohhhh," Rose said slowly.

"Mmm. Reinette is currently violently throwing up in her bathroom."

"Ah." Rose winced. "Oops." Then she patted his hand. "Well, I’m gonna get some more sleep, you go take care of her - "

He pulled a face. “Rose, she’s being sick everywhere.”

"You held my hair back when I had food poisoning. Go do the same for her."

He sighed. “Fine, whatever. But I’ve got one more thing to ask you before you doze off again.”

"What’s that?" she muttered, her eyes closing.

"Why are you in my bed?"

Rose’s eyes shot open and she sat up so quickly that she went dizzy. “Oh,” she murmured, glancing around the Doctor’s room. “Sorry about that. I don’t actually remember what happened past two o’clock, so…” Then her eyebrows jumped her forehead. “You weren’t in here when I got in, were you?”

He tugged on his ear. “I was in the ensuite having a shower and changing into my pjs, just about to go to bed, and then I came through the door and there you were. Sprawled out across the bed, drooling on my pillow.”

Rose blushed. “Sorry.”

He started chuckling. “It’s all right.”

"Why didn’t you wake me?"

"Well, you looked…comfy. And peaceful. I thought it would be easier to just leave you there."

Rose gestured to the fact that she was under the covers. “But did you tuck me in?” she smiled, tongue touching the corner of her mouth.

"I…might’ve helped you with the duvet, yes. Otherwise you would have been cold."

"Thanks. And sorry again that I stole your sleeping place. What did you do?"

"It’s all right, I found somewhere else to sleep," he said cheerfully.

Rose’s smile slid off her face. If he meant –

"Where?"

He rolled his eyes. “Well as you were in here, I slept in your room, obviously.”

"You slept in my bed?"

"Yeah."

“My bed? Alone?”

"Yes. What?" He frowned at her. "Well, I let your cuddly bear stay in there with me, thought it would be rude to toss him out."

Rose giggled and closed her eyes. “Oh. Okay. That’s good news for Rupert.”

"You just gonna stay in here then?" he remarked.

"Mmhmm. If that’s okay. Just for a bit longer. I’m knackered."

"Oh, I brought you a glass of water by the way. It’s on the bedside table next to a couple of non-aspirin tablets for your headache."

"How did you know I had a headache?" she smiled, as she sat back up to take the tablets.

"Well, you had one last time you consumed vast amounts of hypervodka."

"So worth it though. Remember when Jack started dancing on the table?"

"Yes," he groaned. "Unfortunately I do."

"At least we have a Naked Jack story now," she said comfortingly. "So many people do, it was only a matter of time before we did, too."

The Doctor laughed. “That’s true.” They watched one another quietly for a few moments. Then he said something that threw Rose’s world off-kilter again. “This bed is going to smell like Rose, now,” he said casually, as he surveyed the rumpled sheets. He picked up a strand of her hair that was on one of the pillows and arched his eyebrow. “Leaving me bits of yourself to remind me of your presence here?” She gaped at him and he laughed again. “It’s all right, Rose, I don’t mind.”

"When you say it’s going to smell like me - " she started, a bit crossly.

"I mean in a good way. I’m not saying that you smell, Rose. Well, I am, but I’m saying that you smell nice.”

"But I’m all vodka-y."

"Yes, but that doesn’t really have a scent, does it? So right now you smell the same as always."

"Wait." Her brow furrowed – it was too early for them to be having this conversation, in her opinion, but she’d be damned if she let this opportunity slip away from her. "Are you saying you have extensive knowledge about the way I smell?"

"Of course I do," he replied. "We’ve lived together for nearly eighteen months."

"Oh. Right, yeah."

"I mean, you’ll probably recognise my scent, too, when you return to your own bed."

"Mmm," she squeaked, now very much thinking about that. Oh, how fortunate that was. It was bound to prove very useful for her imagination that night. She tried to appear less affected by his words and mumbled, "You know, you can just change these sheets and then you won’t have the problem of them smelling like me."

"It’s not a problem," he said quickly. Rose’s eyes widened and he clarified, "I mean, yes. Of course. That’s a perfectly rational idea." He coughed awkwardly. "Except I think I’m out of clean laundry, in that respect."

Rose’s pulse quickened at that, because she knew for a fact that he was lying. She’d been in the laundry room only yesterday and seen that there were several other bedsheets and duvet covers in there, hung up to dry. Which meant that he wanted to sleep in a bed that smelled like Rose. Which meant that he’d enjoyed sleeping in Rose’s bed last night. Which meant that he’d surely enjoyed the thought of Rose in his bed. Which meant…well, Rose wasn’t sure quite what it meant, exactly, because this was the Doctor she was thinking about, and he was a right alien about things like that, but, she was pretty sure it meant something good because something low in her abdomen was tingling.

They were staring at each other in silence again. He reached his hand out and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, and her breath caught. “Rose,” he murmured. Was it her or did his voice sound a little rough?

She didn’t get to find out what he was going to say next, though, because her phone started ringing and he jumped up. “I put it over here,” he said, reaching for it and glancing at the call-screen before giving it to her. “It’s your mother. I’ll leave you to chat. I’d better go and check on Reinette, anyway.”

"Right, yeah, sure," Rose said, nodding quickly. She pressed ‘answer call’ and settled back down in the bed to listen to Jackie’s latest gossip. Her mind, however, was on something else entirely.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> sorry people, it's gotta get worse before it gets better...prepare for some angst!

Several hours later, feeling a lot better and headache-free, Rose came into the library with a smile on her face. But that smile soon faded. She wasn't surprised that Reinette had discovered this room; she knew that she was an avid reader and incredibly intelligent. Still, it was a bit jarring, coming into the place wherein Rose and the Doctor had shared so many lovely memories together and spotting someone else sitting with him on their sofa. She supposed it was just another change that she would have to get used to. Swallowing thickly, she crept forwards, trying to be as quiet as possible in order to overhear a portion of their conversation.

"And what does Rose think of that?" asked Reinette.

Rose stilled, then jumped behind a bookcase, wondering why they were talking about her.

"I'm not sure," the Doctor mumbled. He sounded a bit sulky. "I haven't mentioned it."

Reinette sighed. "I do not understand why you find yourself so unable to tell her."

"I just…it's too…it's tricky."

"There is a lot to consider, I suppose."

"Yes. Exactly. It will change everything between us and…I'm not sure if she'd – if she'd, you know. Stay."

Rose's chest constricted in fear. What on Earth were they discussing? Was Reinette asking him whether he'd told Rose about their – whatever it was between them?

"I think you underestimate her ability to adapt," Reinette said carefully.

"Maybe. But…listen, you have to understand, Rose has been here for me for so long. She's my best friend. She's made things…so much better, since the War. Telling her…it could ruin everything, because what if...what if she doesn't understand?"

Rose's heart sank, and she put her forehead against the shelf in front of her, steadying her breathing. So she'd been right. Reinette had obviously got around to having the discussion that she'd told Rose she would inevitably have with the Doctor.

So much for Reinette's famed patience. Rose had thought she'd have a little more time to get used to the idea, but apparently not. And he was going to keep it a secret from her? Just so that he didn't lose another friend? "Selfish bastard," Rose muttered under her breath. Knowing she'd only cause herself more pain but unable to stop herself, she strained her ears to hear more, peeking between the books to watch them.

"I think you are behaving cowardly," Reinette was telling him.

He groaned and ran a hand through his hair. "Oh, believe me, I know."

"Please tell her. I do not think I can live here with her if she doesn't know."

Rose's eyes widened. Shit shit shit. He'd better not send Rose home on some sort of pretence.

"I will! Eventually. I just know that it'll open up a whole can of worms. As soon as I tell her that, then she'll want to know why I…"

"Can't be with her," Reinette nodded. "I know."

Tears sneaked into Rose's eyes, and she slid down to the floor, her back against the bookcase. Hadn't her Mum always told her that nothing good came from eavesdropping? She was such an idiot.

"It's just…well, you know how I feel, Reinette. I can barely handle it myself. How the hell is Rose going to react to it?" the Doctor said despondently.

Certainly not by crying herself silly over it, Rose thought to herself, wiping furiously at her eyes. Well, if he didn't want her, fine. Plenty of other people out there who would. She just had to figure out how to get over him and then bam, she'd find someone else. That'd show his ego to the place where the sun don't shine. Standing up on shaky legs, Rose made for the exit.

"Ah, the mysterious ways of love," Reinette said, and Rose picked up her pace, leaving them to it.

Blindly, Rose stumbled to her room, cursing herself for getting so upset. With blurry vision, she made it to her door and rushed inside, before shoving it shut, hard. The TARDIS hummed, and Rose stroked the wall apologetically. "Sorry," she murmured.

She went to her wardrobe and dug out her rucksack, before starting to pack a few things. She was going to ask the Doctor to take her to her mum's for the weekend. She needed space, away from him and Reinette, if she was going to sort out her heart. She wanted, desperately, to keep travelling on the TARDIS, and the only way to do that would be to get herself together and move on. More than a weekend's work, true, but it would be a start, at least.

"Rose?" said the Doctor, in a strangled voice.

Rose looked up abruptly to see the Time Lord standing in her bedroom doorway. She hadn't even heard him open the door. "Oh, hi, Doctor."

"What are you doing?"

She frowned, confused. His eyes were wide, and his hands looked like they were trembling. "What is it, what's happened?" she asked him quickly, surreptitiously wiping at her cheeks.

"What?"

"You look terrified!" she clarified, dropping her things and coming over to him. "What's happened?"

He squinted at her. Then, he gestured at her bags. "You're…packing."

"I…what?" she mumbled, then turned to see what he was pointing at. "Yeah, well I thought I could use a few days with Mum. Was sorting out some stuff to take back."

"Ohhh," he breathed out roughly.

Rose saw his tense shoulders sag in relief. She couldn't believe it. "Doctor, why did you think I was suddenly up and leaving?"

"I…" He scratched at the back of his neck, then cleared his throat. "I saw you leaving the library, just now."

She felt her face flush, mortified that he'd realised she'd been listening in on his conversation with Reinette.

"I didn't realise you were in there until that point, and I thought that maybe you might've…heard something that made you want to leave. Maybe." Rose bit on the inside of her cheek. He continued, "And I just wanted to check that…things are okay? Between you and me, I mean."

"Everything's fine," she shrugged nonchalantly. "I only left 'cos it looked like you and Reinette were having a private conversation. Thought it'd be rude to barge in on it."

The Doctor's eyebrows lifted. "So you didn't…hear anything?"

"Like what?"

"Like…" There was a definite pink tinge to his cheeks, by this point. "I…um, that is to say, I mean…"

"Yes?" Rose prompted, steeling herself.

"Well," he hedged.

"Doctor, what you could you possibly have said that would make you think I'd want to leave?"

He looked at her helplessly. "Rose."

Rose was starting to feel a bit impatient. "Look, if you've got something to tell me, just say it."

The Time Lord shifted from foot to foot. "Could we possibly, um, sit down for a moment?"

She narrowed her eyes at his deflective tactics, knowing that he was simply putting off the inevitable, but complied with his request. They sat on the end of her bed. His eyes kept darting to her rucksack, as if he expected her to jump up and shove in all belongings at any moment.

"So?" she prodded. "What's up?"

The Doctor took her hand in his and she tensed. Oh god, she thought. If he was trying to let her down easy then touching her was not the right way to go about it. Still, she couldn't bring herself to snatch her hand away. It had become an integral part of their friendship, holding hands, and no matter how much she tried to tell herself it didn't mean anything, no one else's hand had ever felt so right in hers.

"Well, Reinette brought something to my attention earlier and I thought that…well, I thought that a bit of…clarification was in order."

"Right. Okay, so what is it?" Rose asked, voice strained.

"Um. See, the thing is, she was under the impression that you might be under the impression that something between us was…going on." His voice was so gentle, so tentative. "But there isn't."

Rose blinked quickly and tried to act casual in her response, frowning at him in apparent confusion. "I don't know what you mean. I never said to her that there was something between us."

His eyes widened. "Oh! No, wait, um." He coughed awkwardly. "Okay, so personal pronouns are frustrating. I didn't mean you and I, I meant that she thought that you thought that me and her were, well, something."

She unscrambled that sentence in her head and came up genuinely confused, this time. "Hold on, what?"

The Doctor's foot started tapping nervously, restlessly, and he sounded frustrated as he answered, "Apparently when you were drunk last night you, uh, asked Reinette things. Things that Reinette, as it turns out, didn't know the answer to – until she discussed it with me earlier, that is. And so, she thought, well, she thought you ought to know too, but I had all these, um, reservations, you see, about telling you that I – that I – well, that – it's – I - "

Rose took pity on him when he started stammering, and squeezed his hand. "So you two haven't been…"

"No."

"See, she told me that, but she also implied that it was only a matter of time."

"Well, I cleared that, um, misunderstanding up."

She quirked an eyebrow. "Misunderstanding?"

"Yes." He paused, then added, "You know I don't do things like that."

"Right. It's just, you kinda led her along a bit there."

"I didn't realise that."

"Doctor, you kiss a woman, she kind of thinks you're interested, you know?"

He went silent. Rose flushed again, wondering if he thought she was making a veiled reference to the fact that he'd kissed her, in Ancient Rome, not two weeks ago; and then said nothing more about it. She slowly extricated her hand from his, feeling awkward.

"Um," he replied eloquently. Then he shook his head and found his words. "Well, strictly speaking she kissed me, so…"

"You kissed back," Rose pointed out.

"I dunno, it was reflexive," he said defensively.

"Right."

"As if you wouldn't snog back, I dunno, Johnny Depp, for example, if he started kissing you."

"Are you seriously comparing a 18th century French aristocrat with a 21st century actor?"

"Yes. Sort of." He frowned. "Anyway, don't ignore what I just said. You would, wouldn't you? Or, say, if we bumped into Jack again."

Rose tilted her head to the side. "There's an idea. Can we go find him yet?"

"I…soon, maybe. We need to have a chat about that first, but anyway, that's not the point." Then he looked at her in askance. "Hold on, you don't just want to find him again so that you can snog him back if he snogs you, do you?"

"What would it matter if I did?" she said, before she could stop herself.

She regretted it immediately because the expression on his face instantly transformed from righteous indignation to feigned neutrality. Just when she thought she'd been coaxing some sort of emotion from him…

Why did he always have to shut down?

"Well, it doesn't, obviously, why would it matter to me, exactly, ahem. Anyway! My point is…well, we've been deviating off all over the place with this conversation so I'm no longer sure what my point is, but it was probably a good one so…there."

Rose couldn't help but giggle at that. "Mmhmm." They looked at each other quietly for a few moments, and she fought the urge to take his hand back.

"Well," he said softly. "Just thought that you should know, that's all."

"Why?" she murmured.

"Just so there were no more…misunderstandings."

"You could change your mind, you know. She's not even been here a full week yet. Give it time, and you might be…revising your decision."

"And how would you feel about that?"

"I'd be fine," she bristled. "I don't know why you think I wouldn't be."

"Right. Well, that's that then."

"Mmm."

"Not that I actually would revise my decision," he added.

"If you say so."

"I do say so. Like I said, I don't…do that sort of thing. And even if I did, I…" he trailed off.

"You what, Doctor?"

"Well, I wouldn't. Not with – I just wouldn't."

"If Johnny Depp came along, I would," she scoffed.

The Doctor smiled at her, an odd, funny little smile. Gentle. "Maybe you think you would, but I'm not so sure."

At that moment, Rose could've sworn he was looking right into her. His eyes, unblinking, did not waver from her gaze for one millisecond as the moment dragged on. She tried to hate him; who was he to read her like a book, to know that she'd probably not even be able to shag someone else – not yet, not even bloody Johnny Depp – whilst she was still hung up on him? Because he evidently knew she wanted more from him. What gave him that right, to know her so completely, when it was obvious he didn't feel the same?

But she couldn't hate him. She could never hate him. And she willed herself to look away, to break his gaze, to stop torturing herself by staring into the flames. But the burning sensation in her chest – which was travelling swiftly lower – forced her to endure his stare. One of her hands clenched in the duvet, and she begged the universe that he would move, speak, do something to stop her asking him about Rome, to stop her requesting that he tell her exactly why he'd kissed her and done nothing more about it, to stop her demanding an explanation from him as to why he didn't think she was good enough to deserve a meaningful conversation.

"Rose," the Doctor whispered. "I…"

Rose held her breath.

He blinked, once, twice, and then cleared his throat. "I can't - " he started, but gave up, and stood, putting some distance between them. She bit into her bottom lip to keep from shouting at him in frustration.

It didn't quite work. "You said something would change everything between us," Rose blurted out randomly, as she remembered something she'd overheard him say to Reinette. "I – that's all I heard. What did you mean by that?"

The Doctor swallowed hard. "Rose, I can't - "

"Bullshit, please just answer me for once," she said, on a surge of courage.

"I just meant that…that it would change things between me and you if I told you…"

Her pulse rate quickened and she stood up, so that she was standing right in front of him. "Told me what?" she asked breathlessly.

He looked so close to telling her, whatever it was. His mouth opened and closed, his lips starting to form his words. But then something shuttered off in his gaze again, his eyes returning to their guarded norm, and she felt her anticipation dissipate.

"Sometimes, Rose, I think you forget that I'm not human," he said, his voice deliberate and controlled. And cold. She knew he was saying the wrong words, knew this hadn't been where he was going with his explanation. "I was worried that if I told you that Reinette and I weren't…like you thought, then you'd think that that meant that you and I could be instead. But we can't, because I'm just not – I don't – I can't do things like that. I can't get attached in that way. It's nothing personal. It's just not my way. Okay?"

Rose clenched her hands into fists. She could tell that he was talking bollocks. It was obvious that he was spinning her an alternative line to get out of what he'd almost said. He was being selfish, and a prick, and a thousand other things, but he thought he was being kind. Firm but fair. Well, he wasn't. He was carving her heart in two. But that was okay. Because she realised in that moment that she couldn't wait around expecting him to get his shit together any time soon. She'd stay with him, because that was what she'd promised and what she wanted. But she certainly wasn't going to be following him around scraping for the odd bit of affection now and then, no matter how often moments like their earlier almost-something seemed to be happening recently.

He would never follow through, and Rose had to learn to accept that. "Okay," she said, her voice calm. "That's fine. Didn't ever assume we'd go there anyway. We're just friends, right?"

His jaw was clenched tight, so he merely nodded.

"Listen, about visiting my Mum - "

"Can't you put that off for a few days?" he interrupted swiftly. "I've got an adventure planned for tomorrow."

"I…" Rose floundered. She knew what he was doing; he was panicking that if he took her home for a visit now, after him saying all that, she might very well stay there and not want to come back. Utter nonsense, of course, but he was being irrational this evening. "All right then," she sighed. "I'll visit her next week."

He relaxed. "Thank you."

"It's fine." They stood there awkwardly for a few more seconds, before Rose said, "You know, I'm pretty tired, so I think I'm gonna jump in the bath and then head to bed."

He nodded. "Right, okay. Yes. Of course." He tugged on his ear as he walked towards the doorway. "Um. Night, then."

"Night, Doctor," Rose replied, then closed the door behind him. "Alien git," she muttered, pressing her forehead against the wood.


	14. Chapter 14

The following day, the Doctor and Rose acted as though the previous evening’s conversation had never happened. Neither of them brought it up, and Rose knew that he’d never apologise for the harshness of his words or his cowardice, so she tried to put it to the back of her mind. There was an adventure on an alien planet to be had, so she was all for shoving thoughts of the Time Lord - and his hypocrisy and double standards and his downright lies - right out of her head, if possible.

Within hours, they found trouble, and it was just the thing to keep Rose occupied.

They soon discovered that Reinette really didn’t like getting locked up in a prison cell. It was a new experience for Mickey, too, and he was also complaining. For the Doctor and Rose, it was pretty normal, so they found the other two’s moaning funny at first. Then a bit annoying.

"Look, we’ll get out. We always do," said Rose, through clenched teeth. Mickey had been yabbering on in one ear about how it was ‘typical of you and the Doctor to go looking for trouble, and now look where we’ve ended up!’ And Reinette, who was seated on the other side of her with her eyes fixed on the Doctor’s backside as he paced back and forth the length of the cell, kept making these little sighs of frustration, her forehead perpetually pinched into a frown. They had only been in here for just over a minute, and already they were getting incredibly impatient, and as such, Rose was getting impatient with them.

"But what if we don’t?" Mickey grumbled. "They took his screwdriver!"

"Just be glad they put us all in a cell together," remarked the Doctor, as he finally stopped pacing and came over to the bench they were sitting on. "Budge up," he said to Mickey, plonking himself between him and Rose. He stretched his legs out in front of him and hummed thoughtfully. Rose hid her smile. "Right, let’s brainstorm," he announced. "What have we got?"

Rose liked this game. This, she could do. She said, “Okay. Fourteen guards; all half-dragon, half-humanoid. Seven Khatasan officers waiting outside, in front of the entrance, discussing whether we should be executed or not. No sonic, no psychic paper, no bananas, no phones. No way of breaking through the door ‘cos we’ve nothing heavy enough in here. No ventilation shafts or windows to crawl through. No spoons to dig our way out over the course of several decades. No food or drink, and a planet with no concept of the Geneva Conventions, let alone any regard for intergalactic law.”

The Doctor grinned at her proudly. The other two looked at her in bewilderment. Rose shrugged. “We’re kind of veterans at the getting imprisoned thing. I know my way around a jail now.”

"And you are completely right," he said, and the way he was gazing at her made her feel a bit funny. Bastard. "Doesn’t look like there’s a way out for us. Not on the surface of things. However…" He raised his eyebrows at her meaningfully, and she picked up his sentence.

"However, they forgot to take one very important thing from us," Rose said.

"What’s that?" asked Mickey and Reinette.

The Doctor held out his hand and Rose plucked something from down the front of her shirt. Mickey’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. “The key,” the Doctor finished gleefully, then kissed it. Rose blushed a bit, wondering if he realised that she had literally been storing that in her bra for the last few minutes. “The lock on that door isn’t very fancy. I can use this from this side to open it. Basic fault, that.”

Reinette narrowed her eyes, squinting at them in confusion. “How – how did you manage that?”

"Somebody once taught me how to pickpocket a prison guard without them noticing," Rose answered, nodding her head towards the Doctor as he jumped up and walked over to the doors, "He’s quite the expert at talking nonsense at a very rapid pace. So when he was chatting to the guard, driving him barmy no doubt, I managed to swipe it."

"Okay, that’s…impressive," granted Mickey. "But how the hell are we gonna get past the seventeen guards?"

"Fourteen," Rose corrected. "Plus the seven officers. And we’ll distract them."

"How?"

"Dunno yet. Any ideas, Doctor?"

The Doctor peered through the little window in the cell door. “Well, there’s only one right out here. And only four are dispersed along the corridor that we’ll need to run down to get out; the remaining ten are on the floors above, so we needn’t worry about them yet.” He turned to face the others. “I have an idea, but you’re not going to like it.” He was looking directly at Rose.

"I’m not gonna like it?" Rose asked. "Why not?"

He tugged on his ear. “It might be a little bit embarrassing.”

"Oh no," she said firmly. "We’re not getting naked again."

"Excuse me?" Mickey said loudly.

"Shh," the Doctor chided. "Don’t want the guard hearing our plans. Yet. And no, Rose, we won’t be getting naked this time."

"This time?" put in Reinette.

"It’s a long story involving a three-day stay in a prison on Velakotops. We were desperate," justified Rose. "We had to distract the guards somehow.”

"Exactly," continued the Doctor. "And today I propose we use a similar tactic, but to refrain from embarrassing ourselves too much in front of our friends here I suggest we do it with our clothes on this time."

"Do what?" Mickey asked insistently. "What are you going on about? You’re not telling me you had sex in order to escape from a prison cell!"

"No!" said the Doctor hurriedly. "Not – not really. Not properly. We just pretended, a little bit, maybe.”

"Bloody hell," Mickey grumbled.

"Oh Jesus. You swore to me that we’d never mention that again," muttered Rose. This was not what she needed right now, not so hot on the heels of last night’s bullshit. "This is gonna be awkward. You sure you don’t want to do this with Reinette instead?"

The Doctor frowned. “No, that’s not – no. You’re experienced at this particular method of distraction, I need you for this.”

"Yeah," she scoffed, "But Reinette - "

"I really would rather not take part in any of what it is you two are discussing. I’d rather sit here quietly until we are freed, to be honest."

"Fine," sighed Rose. She stood up, and gulped. "You’re gonna pay for this," she muttered under breath to the Doctor.

He flashed her a cheeky smile. “Oh, I know.” He looked at the other two. “Okay, in a moment Rose and I will be making some very strange noises, and then the guard will try to come in to see what’s going on – but he won’t be able to, because we have his key. So, he’ll panic and hurry off to get his friends. He might just bring a couple, might bring all four. We’ll quickly unlock the door and you two will stand in the corridor, unfortunately but necessarily in their line of sight. They will be coming from the direction that we all need to go in, so there’s no way of getting past them. Therefore, when they arrive, we’ll distract them, and you two say that the guards need to sort us out, or some such. Hopefully they’ll all be so - “

"Perverted," Rose muttered.

”- curious that they’ll all come in and have a look, and then we’ll do something which I haven’t decided yet to trap them in here whilst we leg it outside. Meanwhile, you two will already be halfway down the corridor, checking for more guards – carefully and quietly, so that they don’t see or hear you. Trust me, you really don’t want one of them breathing out fire at you.”

"No shit," Mickey retorted.

"Then, we’ll leg it out of here."

"And the officers outside?" Reinette reminded him.

"Oh, we just run past them," said the Doctor. "The TARDIS is only parked a mile away. Nice quick sprint’ll do the trick, then we’re safe."

Reinette looked a little nauseous. “Are you sure this plan is going to work?”

"Oh yes; it’s foolproof."

Rose groaned.

"That’s it, perfect," he said. "Bit louder next time; these walls aren’t that thin."

"No, I was groaning because you always say stuff like that, ‘oh, it’s foolproof, nothing can possibly go wrong,’ and end up jinxing it!” snapped Rose.

"Okay, I’m sorry," he replied. "But come on, this isn’t gonna work if you’re acting angry with me."

"Oh, I dunno," Rose said. "Knowing you, that’d be right up your street."

Silence.

The Doctor quirked an eyebrow, but she could tell she’d struck a bit of a chord because his cheeks were turning slightly pink. Mickey and Reinette studied the floor and the ceiling respectively.

"Anyway," Rose said briskly. "Let’s just get on with it, shall we?"

"Yes," he murmured. "Yes, let’s."

::

"Told you that you jinxed it," Rose muttered, twenty minutes later. She and the Doctor were tied to a stake together, back to back, just about ready to be executed via burning. "Fantastic plot twist, I must say," she continued sarcastically. "Who’d’ve thought that your wonderful plan could’ve possibly gone this wrong."

"At least Reinette and Mickey got away," he said defensively.

"Yeah, but what use are they gonna be?"

"Rose!"

"Look, I’m not being mean, I’m just saying that they don’t know where we are or what’s happening, so how are they going to get us out of this?”

He felt around behind him and found her hand, entwining their fingers tightly. “It’s okay. We’ll figure something out.”

"Doctor, they’ve got torches. They are literally about to burn us alive. I’d quite like it if you thought up a plan a bit quicker, please."

"Why am I the one who always has to think up a plan, eh?" he grumbled.

"Excuse me?"

He heaved a sigh. “Sorry.”

"Look, if these are our last moments together, I don’t want to spend them arguing."

"Me neither," he said softly. "But we’ll get out of this, Rose. I’m not about to let you die."

"For fraternising with a known criminal, no less," she said.

"Maybe we should’ve got naked," he mused.

"What? They would’ve hated us even more for being so ‘inappropriate.’ It would’ve made this worse!"

"No it wouldn’t. Think about it. If we are going to die today, then it would have been a much better lead-up if we’d at least got to see each other naked again.”

"Doctor."

"Yeah?"

"Are you seriously flirting whilst we are tied to a stake?"

"I’m trying to take my mind off our impending doom."

"Thought you said we weren’t going to die."

"Meh. Not so sure about that, now that that big guy is lighting the torches."

"Shit."

"Hmm." He squeezed her hand. "Rose?"

"Yeah?" She tried to crane her neck to look at him, but their position was too awkward.

"I just want you to know something." He cleared his throat. "Um. Bit tricky, this. But it feels like it needs saying."

"What’s that?" she asked nervously.

"Well. Well…Well, the thing is. What I…what I said last night."

"Doctor, I don’t think this is the right time…"

"No, but Rose. Listen. Um. Me and you – I – thing is - "

"What’s the thing?" Rose asked impatiently.

"Well, I was a bit scared, and I said a couple of things that I didn’t mean."

"Like?"

He squeezed her hand. “Like…the getting attached thing. I mean, I’m already…you know. Quite, uh. Attached to you. So that was stupid, to say that. As if I could actually deal with it if you left, or if you… Anyway, I didn’t want you to think that there haven’t been moments where I, um, wanted things to be different, and…”

"Doctor?"

"And…"

"And what?"

"And I’m sorry."

"Right."

"You see, what I was really, actually, meaning to say last night, was that no matter how much I wish - "

The Doctor was cut off by a large commotion amongst the crowd of Khatasans that had gathered to watch their execution.

"What’s going on?" Rose asked, hearing the noise but unable to see from her angle.

"I think someone’s causing a riot," he murmured back.

"Are Mickey and Reinette there?"

"Nope, can’t see them. I think it’s – ooh, listen. Sounds like a patrol has found the real culprits. They assumed that we were the ones who kidnapped their missing children."

"What?!"

"Because we’re off-worlders, and we started meddling in their business earlier today by digging for info on the mystery. So they thought it was us. But, just in the nick of time, they’ve found the real criminals.” He sighed in relief. “I hope they release us.”

"Well, they’ll have to, won’t they? They can’t put us to death now they know we’re innocent!"

"Hopefully not…"

At that point, the leader of the Khatasan Officer Corps came forward and addressed the Doctor, “It appears we have wrongfully accused you and your partner. We shall see to it that you are released and that the real wrongdoers discover the meaning of justice.”

Rose’s tense body relaxed in relief. But she couldn’t help but think, “Doctor…does this mean that they are going to burn the criminals alive instead?”

"I…I think so, yes."

"Do you think they deserve it? Or should we stop it?"

"Um…" He didn’t really know what to say to that. "Maybe we should have a word with the main guy, see if we can’t get him to sentence them to life imprisonment instead, or at least give them a fair trial."

"Yeah, I think I like the sound of that," she replied gratefully, as two of the officers came to untie her and the Doctor from the stake.

They managed to have their conversation with the leader, who promised to consider it, but only if they got the hell away from their planet and never returned; apparently, these people really didn’t like them meddling.

So, content that they’d done all they could, the Doctor and Rose legged it back to the TARDIS.


	15. Chapter 15

They were both laughing and panting from exertion as they came through the TARDIS doors. Their laughter soon faded, however, as they looked up at the two angry faces looming down at them from the top of the ramp.

"Ah," said the Doctor. "You got back all right, then?"

"Yeah, no thanks to you," Mickey scoffed, arms folded.

Rose shifted from foot to foot, feeling like a naughty schoolchild. "We tried to get back sooner…"

"It's just, we were sort of, um," the Doctor looked at Rose for help.

"Captured by angry locals."

"Yes, quite."

Reinette narrowed her eyes at them both. "We know."

"We saw you get taken," explained Mickey.

Rose's mouth dropped open. "Then why didn't you do something?"

"We could not get any closer without them detecting us, too," Reinette replied, bristling.

The Doctor raised his eyebrows and put a hand on Rose's arm when she looked like she was going to retort. Shaking his head, he said, sensibly, "Let's go and sit down, before the adrenaline wears off and we fall down."

Reinette and Mickey reluctantly parted their united front at the end of the ramp to let Rose and the Doctor through. Flopping down onto the jumpseat next to Rose, the Doctor sighed, "Right, what else?"

"What do you mean?" asked Mickey.

"What else do you want to shout at us about?" he clarified.

"I am not impressed," said Reinette sternly. "Neither of you had any thought to your own safety, nor mine or Mickey's, and quite frankly I think you enjoyed it!"

The Doctor and Rose shared a mischievous glance.

"No!" said Reinette. "This isn't funny.You two could have died today, and where would that have left Mickey and I, hmm? We would have been stranded! In that awful, awful place. Why would you even take us there?"

"They needed our help," said the Doctor firmly, now thoroughly unamused with Reinette's lecture. He stood up. "And that's what we do. I'm sorry if you don't like that, Reinette, but things like what happened today – they are part of our life. Not always, thank goodness, or it would drive us mad. But, occasionally, we try to help out and people misunderstand and then we have brushes with death -"

"But you weren't even scared! The pair of you were acting so confident, as though you could set it all right, well, what if one day you can't?"

"You think I wasn't scared?" the Doctor snapped. "You think I wasn't terrified that I was going lose Rose today? Honestly, of all the ridiculous things to say, Reinette. Of course I was scared. But what could I do? I couldn't let the Khatasans see that, could I? Not when they thought she and I were responsible for their people going missing. If I'd shown them how terrified I was, they most certainly would have killed her, just to destroy me as punishment."

Rose stared at the back of his head in shock. She had never heard him say something like that. Not since the early days, when he voiced his fears over saving the world but losing her.

However, Reinette continued to express her disapproval over the events of the day. Mickey and Rose remained silent as Reinette and the Doctor's voices grew louder and more exasperated with every sentence.

A while back, Rose had acknowledged to herself, privately, that whenever she got angry at the Doctor – about various things, ranging from how he'd handled a Situation to how he'd left something on the floor causing her to trip over – he never stayed angry at her for long. Sure, he'd fight back, give as good as he'd got, defend himself or accuse her right back, but there was always a moment where he'd be looking at her, eyes fierce and burning, and she'd inexplicably know that her passion was fuelling his, and that it wasn't necessarily a negative thing.

It was daft, because he irritated her to high heaven sometimes, but as soon as the switch was flipped and he looked like he wanted to shove her against the wall and have his way with her, her belly would start to flutter in anticipation.

And she'd realised. Her anger excited him. Reminded him how she wouldn't take things lightly, wouldn't let him win without a fight; she knew he liked that. She didn't know why she knew that, she just did. And though they'd never said anything, and though he'd never followed through and shut her up with a snog, god, those moments…that was when she could see something direct and honest in his gaze, and he wanted her. She knew it.

The only problem was, there had been a shift, since Reinette joining them on the TARDIS. Well, before that, really - when Mickey came aboard. Rose and the Doctor were rarely alone together these days, and she still had her suspicions – and no confirmations or otherwise, despite him saying that they weren't shagging – about his feelings for the other woman aboard the ship. So she'd tried to put those moments, the moments where she had been so sure of his emotions, to the back of her mind, telling herself she'd misread him.

And here was Reinette, shouting at the Doctor like there was no tomorrow, showing them that the usually calm and so very composed woman did have a bit of a temper after all. And quite right; the Doctor had been a bit thoughtless today, at least regarding his friends' safety.

But what was interesting Rose most of all was that he didn't appear to be enamoured by her ire one bit. When Rose had shouted at him, it had sparked something needful in his gaze, whereas watching him argue with Reinette in this moment, she could tell that he just found the entire thing irritating and exhausting. And so Rose wondered.

Perhaps she hadn't been mistaken after all. Because there was definitely a difference.

Still, it didn't matter now. All that mattered, really, was his awful deflection last night, basically telling her that if he couldn't be with Reinette then he certainly couldn't be with her.

Rose came out of her private thoughts when she realised that the room had fallen quiet. Reinette was glaring at the Doctor. At least, she was until he stormed out. After ten minutes of an incredibly awkward atmosphere in the console room, and several rounds of Rose telling herself not to, she ignored Reinette's protests and followed him, suspecting that he'd headed to the library to calm down.

::

Rose went to the library, and sure enough, she found him in there, his hands folded in front of him and looking pensive.

"Is she still very angry?" he said, and she was startled as she didn't realise he'd seen her come in.

"Yeah, she is," she answered.

"Thought so."

"Mickey doesn't approve of what happened today, either," she said quietly.

"Neither did I," the Doctor snorted. He patted the sofa, offering her a seat. "But what could we do? There wasn't an easy way out of it."

"I know," Rose replied. She sat down beside him and he lifted his arm, placing it around her shoulders, tucking her into his side.

"You were brilliant today, by the way," he whispered, before pressing a quick kiss to the side of her head.

Something caught in Rose's throat. "Th-thanks."

His fingers started stroking her upper arm slowly, casually, as though he wasn't even aware he was doing it. She knew she should gather up the courage to tell him to stop - to tell him that after last night, he had no right to touch her in this way. But, god, she just - she couldn't. She couldn't help but what him to keep doing things like this, even when she knew that he was only hurting her by continuing this pretence that everything was fine between them.

"I meant what I said, you know. Earlier, to Reinette. I was scared. I thought…" he trailed off, releasing a shuddering breath.

"It's okay. We got through it, like we always do. And, well…the nearly-burnt-at-the-stake thing excluded, the rest of the day was fun."

He smiled. "I love – how you love it," he said. "This life. I love that you love it just as much as I do."

Rose's pulse quickened. It had almost felt like a bit of a declaration, that. "Yeah, well, I do. And I want to do this forever."

He rested his head against hers and sighed. "You really mean that, don't you?"

"Yes." She paused, and waited for him to respond. When he said nothing further, she continued, "So can I?"

"Can you what?"

"Can I do this forever?"

He turned his head to look at her strangely. "I already said that you could spend the rest of your life with me."

She swallowed hard. "I thought you were just saying that as a, you know, turn of phrase. To make the point that you couldn't spend the rest of yours with me."

"Oh. Well, yes, but I said it because – well. I said it because I meant it."

His eyes were dark, very dark, and Rose stared into them for a few moments. God, his gaze was so intense. "Okay. Good," she whispered.

"Good," he echoed, his volume matching hers. His gaze flickered to her lips and she nearly stopped breathing, wondering if he was going to finally make some sort of move. Despite his words to the contrary yesterday, they kept having moments like this, and it was driving her barmy, the way they were nearly always interrupted, or if they weren't, the way he always stepped back from her.

This time was no different, unfortunately. He cleared his throat and glanced away, focussing his eyes on the fireplace. Something twisted in Rose's stomach; she wondered if he was thinking about Reinette.

"Do you think she'll not want to stay, because of what happened today?" Rose asked quietly.

"Hmm?" he replied, looking back at her. "Sorry, what?"

"Reinette. She didn't seem to like what we did on Gitai, even though we needed to do it."

He shrugged. "Well, I told her that we can take her home whenever she wants. If the danger today put her off, then fair enough."

"Wouldn't you be upset, though? If she left? She's not been here very long so far..."

"She has to go back at some point, anyway," he pointed out. "Because she's got her place in history to fill."

"I know, but you - we'll miss her, yeah? And I can't help but think that it'll be too awkward to visit her, once she's back at Versailles, unless you can get more precise with the TARDIS so that we don't risk a paradox or something."

"Rose."

"Yeah."

"I don't know if you know – or if I should tell you this, but…"

Rose bit her lip worriedly. Was this it? Was this where he told her that, despite him not acting on them in a way she'd expect, he had feelings for Reinette, and that he'd go and visit her - timelines and paradoxes be damned?

"Go for it. What's wrong?" Rose said, bracing herself.

"Well. Reinette dies quite young," he said softly, after glancing around to make sure the woman in question wasn't listening in. "There would be a very small window of opportunity to visit her anyway."

Rose gasped. "What?"

"I'm sorry. Maybe I shouldn't have told you…I wasn't sure if you already knew or not."

"No, I deliberately didn't look her up 'cos I wanted to find out for myself what she's like," Rose said dazedly. "I can't believe it. How? When?"

"Tuberculosis. In about five years' time for her. 1764."

"And there's no way of stopping that?"

"Nope," he said. He smiled sadly. "I'm sorry, Rose."

"But – but it's not fair, she'll only be what, forty-two? My Mum's nearly that age!"

"I know. I know. It's awful. Voltaire wrote about her death, expressing his sorrow over the fact that himself, so old, so aged, could still be alive whilst this young woman wasn't."

Rose looked away, blinking quickly. "Oh god."

"Rose, you can't say anything to her."

"I'm not an idiot," she murmured.

"I know. I just – you're a compassionate person, and I know you; you want to stop it, somehow, but we can't. We really can't."

"But what's that gonna do to you?" she asked.

"I…how do you mean?"

"Well…"

"Rose, like I said, we can't visit her. Once she's home, that's it. It'll be too risky. Besides, she's going to be very busy for the next few years."

"Then I guess she's got to make the most of her time with you," Rose said, and she felt like she was at a crossroads. No, a turning point. This was where she had to decide if she could put her own feelings to the back of her mind for the sake of Reinette and the Doctor, and the small amount of time they had left to spend with each other. "I think…Doctor, I think I'm gonna go to bed. If that's all right with you."

He nodded, watching her carefully as she shrugged off his arm and stood up. "Okay. Try not to think about it too much, Rose. I'm sorry that I told you, I didn't think."

"It's okay. It must be a lot harder for you to deal with, so at least you don't have to keep your worries about it to yourself anymore." She took in a deep breath. "If you want to chat about it, then I'm here."

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Well, if you need someone to talk to…if you're…feeling sad, then I can lend an ear and all that, yeah?"

"Oh…kay," he said slowly, looking at her as though he still didn't understand what she meant. Rose gave up.

"Night, Doctor."

"Goodnight."


	16. Chapter 16

The next day, the Doctor said that he had to spend some time fixing something beneath the console, so whilst Mickey sequestered himself in his room playing video games, Rose showed Reinette the swimming pool.

This was one of Rose's favourite rooms on the TARDIS. It never stayed quite the same; some days there would be a slide, other days a wave machine, sometimes both, sometimes neither, sometimes a whirlpool. Today, the pool was rectangular in shape, with several wide steps dipping into it and palm trees placed around the sides. The loungers were already equipped with towels, and there was sand beneath them, as though the TARDIS had decided to make Rose her very own private beach.

"Ta-da," Rose grinned, as she presented it to Reinette, whose eyes lit up.

"This is marvellous," Reinette said, beaming at the other woman.

Rose was glad that Reinette seemed to be over her anger of the previous day. "I'm glad you think so."

"But what will we wear?"

"Ah, come with me," replied Rose, grabbing her hand. She led her to the back of the room, and opened a door to the showers and changing area. Along one wall was a selection of swimming costumes; from bikinis to full-length wetsuits. Grabbing her own pink and white bikini, Rose said, "Feel free to choose whichever one you want to wear," and left her to get change.

When Rose emerged, Reinette was also wearing a bikini, a green one that complimented her figure well. "It suits you," Rose said kindly.

Reinette shifted from foot to foot awkwardly. "Really? I feel a little…exposed."

"You look lovely," Rose assured her, and then they went back into the pool room.

Slowly entering the water to grow accustomed to the temperature, Reinette sighed in delight. "This was such a good idea, Rose. I have not been swimming for a very long time."

"I'm glad you like it," Rose replied.

They swam a few lengths in a comfortable silence, but before too long they were chatting as they went, sometimes stopping to laugh and playfully splash one another. Rose felt good. It was nice, having another woman around to talk to and have fun with.

Then the Doctor came into the room and Rose groaned to herself, knowing that her good mood was bound to disappear as soon as the Doctor caught sight of Reinette in a bikini.

"Ah, here you both are," he said, standing at the end of the pool with his hands in his pockets. "Having fun?"

"Yes!" cried Reinette enthusiastically. "It's fantastic!"

Rose couldn't help but smile. Reinette's happiness was sort of a bit infectious. "How are your repairs going?" she asked the Doctor.

"Meh, all right. But I got a bit bored. Thought I'd come and see what you were up to."

"Why don't you join us?" Reinette suggested.

His eyes widened and he backed up a step. "Ah, no. No thank you."

"Are you afraid of the water?" she asked, sounding confused.

Rose snorted. "No, he just doesn't like getting down to his knickers in front of other people."

"Oi!"

"Well, that isn't true, because yesterday you were both speaking of that time you were naked together in a prison cell," Reinette reminded them matter-of-factly.

Rose flushed red, and glanced at the Time Lord, who was tugging on his ear awkwardly. "Yeah, well, he's never been one for swimming," Rose mumbled. He'd certainly refused all Rose's offers to join her in the pool over the last few months, and whenever they went to the beach he always preferred to watch her rather than join in himself. She didn't even think he owned a pair of swim trunks.

Reinette looked back up at the Doctor. "Please, Doctor?"

"No, I really…"

"Come on, Fireplace Man, enjoy yourself for once."

His hand transferred from his ear to scratch at the back of his neck. "It really isn't a good idea…"

"Why not?" she pouted.

Rose's lips twitched. "Yeah, why not, Doctor?" she asked, deciding to join Reinette and gang up on him.

"I…" he floundered.

"Go and get changed into something suitable," commanded Reinette. "We'll be waiting."

He stared down at them in the pool for a few seconds, befuddled. "But - "

"No buts," said Rose and Reinette simultaneously.

"That was spooky," he muttered, shuddering, but nevertheless he wandered to the other side of the room, towards the changing rooms.

"This is gonna be funny," Rose grinned. "As soon as he gets in, we both splash him, yeah?"

Reinette laughed. "Definitely."

::

They stuck to their plan, and as soon as he came into the pool – in his TARDIS-blue trunks – they attacked.

Spluttering in surprise, the Doctor shook his now-wet hair, making sure to do so in their direction.

For a while, everything was fine and normal and quite fun. They swam and chased and splashed and it was all good.

And then they played a game of water volleyball, or rather, piggy-in-the-middle.

Things got very competitive; the women decided to help each other, teaming up against the Doctor, and so every time they volleyed the ball to one another, he tried to intercept it.

However, at one point, a bit fed up of not being able to get his hands on it himself, he dove for the ball whilst it was still in Rose's grasp. Giggling, she propelled herself backwards, but not before the Doctor had already initiated contact; they sank into the water together, chest against chest, their legs entangling, and he fumbled for the ball that she held above her head. When they resurfaced, he had one arm wrapped around her waist and one arm up in the air, keeping his prize from her as she tried to retrieve it. "Nope, nope, nope," he said, laughing. "Mine now."

Rose started to laugh as well, but then she realised their position, and her face heated up. And she subsequently remembered his words of five seconds ago, and glanced down at his very possessive grip on her waist. The Doctor must have realised the implication of his words too, because he quickly let go of her and waved the ball in her face. "I got it," he said needlessly, taking a few steps back from her. Unbeknownst to him, Reinette had sneaked up behind him, and she easily swiped the ball from his hand, wiping the cocky grin right off his face.

"Actually, Doctor, I have it. So I win," Reinette announced with a smile.

"Maybe it's time to call it a day," suggested Rose, as she giggled at his outraged face. "I'm knackered."

Reinette nodded in agreement. "Yes, it's been quite tiring, hasn't it?"

"All right then. I'm getting a bit hungry, anyway," replied the Doctor.

Rose and Reinette got out of the pool first, and as they stood by the side of pool drying off, Rose felt the Doctor's eyes on them. Or, most likely, on Reinette, who was jiggling her chest all over the place as she attempted to get dry. Rose sighed and glanced at the Doctor, who was still in the pool.

He looked very flustered, and Rose firmly stamped down on her inner jealousy. He might have claimed to Rose earlier in the week that he wouldn't let anything happen between him and Reinette, but it was clear in her mind that he might not stick to that decision. Especially now that he'd seen Reinette in…well, not very much.

But then – wait. Who was he looking at?

Rose frowned. The Doctor swam forwards, and rested his arms on the edge of the pool as he lifted his head to talk to them. "So, where would you two like to go for dinner?"

"Anywhere," said Reinette breezily. She was in a very good mood, and Rose was glad of that, as yesterday had been awkward with Reinette feeling so irritated with them.

"I don't mind," Rose shrugged.

He nodded. "Hmm, okay…I'll have a think, then."

"Well, I suppose I cannot go anywhere dressed like this, so I should go and get changed," Reinette mused.

"There are a few places in the universe where what you're wearing is the height of fashion and completely normal," he replied. "But yes, most planets require a bit more covering-up, at least during the day."

Reinette laughed, the sound almost musical, and left the room. The Doctor climbed out of the pool and sat down on one of the loungers beside Rose, eyes focussed on the doorway for a moment before turning his head to look at her.

"I think we should go somewhere posh for dinner," Rose suggested quietly, as she used her towel to dry her hair.

"Really?" He wrinkled his nose. "You usually hate those places. Apart from balls. You're fond of balls. But posh restaurants aren't really your style. Wouldn't you rather chips?"

She swatted him with her towel. "I think it'll be good. To make Reinette feel a bit more at home, you know?"

"You both seemed to be having fun together earlier. Mind you, you're both easy people to get along with, so I shouldn't be surprised."

"She's just – I dunno. She's enjoyed herself today, but I can tell that she's feeling a little homesick. Don't look at me like that – I can just tell. You never notice things like that, 'cos you're not human. But I can see it in her eyes. Take her somewhere fancy and treat her to a slap-up meal," she said. Then she'll love you forever, she thought to herself.

She wasn't sure why she was practically encouraging them, but she felt, somewhere in her head if not her heart, that it was the right thing to do. She'd done a lot of thinking last night, after her chat with the Doctor. Both Reinette and him deserved some happiness. She wasn't quite certain what they were to each other, but she knew they could do that for each other. Make each other happy.

Not that she thought herself unable to do the same. She knew whenever he looked at her that she made him happy as well. It was just that maybe she wasn't enough. She obviously wasn't enough to hold his attention, so maybe she just had to accept that he needed more than her in his life to feel less lonely. At least for the little while that he could have Reinette, before he had to let her go.

She couldn't stop thinking about the fact that the Doctor and Reinette had seen into each other's minds that day they first met her. That was the crux of it, Rose now realised. They'd seen into each other's minds, and what could be more intimate than that? Certainly not sex. Not in-jokes. Not holding hands. Not lingering looks. Nothing that she herself could offer him, that was for sure.

"All right," he answered, snapping her out of her thoughts. "You ladies dress up formal and we'll go to Tenazi Prime, the best restaurant-come-spacestation this side of the universe."

"Good," she said simply.

He glanced down at himself, where he was dripping all over the sand. "Can I borrow your towel?" he asked her, seeing that she was mostly dry.

Even though she'd just wrapped it around herself to cover up, she untied it and handed it to him, saying, "Sure."

He thanked her and began patting his legs dry. Rose couldn't help but notice that his eyes kept darting sideways, as though trying to catch sneaky glimpses of her whilst pretending to look at the floor. She felt that funny feeling in her stomach again, and didn't know what to do about it. One minute she was convincing herself to let him be with Reinette, the next minute she wanted him to do something about the way he was looking at her. It was maddening. What did he want?

Who did he want?

"Thanks for joining in today," she said quietly, mostly to break the silence and distract herself from her thoughts.

"That's all right. It ended up being quite enjoyable," he smiled, meeting her eyes.

"Why did you never want to come swimming before? You're really good at it."

His smile faded slightly. "I…um…"

"Doctor?" She paused, but he didn't say anything, and it looked like he was – "Doctor, are you blushing?"

"No! What? Why would I be blushing?" he spluttered, tossing the towel over his shoulder in an overly-casual move.

"You are," she insisted, reaching forwards to cup his cheek. "You're going all pink."

The Doctor stared at her in silence, and she realised what she was doing and started to withdraw her hand. But to her surprise, his own hand shot upwards and he gripped her wrist before she could move it back, keeping her palm connected with his cheek. "Doctor?" she murmured, unsure.

His thumb started stroking along the heel of her hand. "I didn't want to come swimming before because…because I was worried I'd embarrass myself. In front of you."

"But you're not bad at it, and you're not scared, so…?"

"I know, but I didn't know that before today. New body, and all that," he said vaguely, waving his free hand around.

Rose eyed him sceptically. She didn't believe that was the reason. "Doctor, are you sure that's why?"

"Yes," he whispered.

She smiled cheekily, trying to lighten the mood. "Sure it wasn't 'cos you didn't want me seeing you in your trunks?"

"Well." He sniffed, and tilted his head to the side. "That might've been part of it, too."

"Don't worry, I've seen worse."

"Thanks," he snorted.

"Or was it because you didn't like the idea of getting all wet and half-naked within a couple of metres of me?" she remarked next, figuring that she might as well go for it seeing as he was the one holding her hand to his cheek and caressing her wrist.

His eyes nearly popped out of his head.

Bingo.

"I – I - " he spluttered.

"Well?" she prompted, smirking.

"You are so…" he muttered, shaking his head at her. But the corner of his mouth was quirking into a smile.

"Correct?" she finished for him.

He rolled his eyes. "Not what I was going for."

"But true."

He released his hold of her wrist and she was almost disappointed until she realised he had done so with the intention of using both his hands to tickle her into submission. She fell backwards onto her lounger, giggling as his fingers swept down her sides and across her belly, and begged him for mercy. "No, stop, please, no," she gasped out between chuckles. He just raised his eyebrows and smirked at her, placing his knee between her legs on her lounger to hover over her for better leverage.

She grabbed hold of the towel still slung over his shoulder and tried to swat him with it in a defensive manoeuvre, but he soon grabbed it from her and slipped it beneath her head as she wriggled around for freedom. He then used it to tug her head upwards, bringing her into a sitting position. And, consequently, bringing her mouth very close to his. He let go of the towel, so that it was left hanging around her neck, and placed his hands on her hips.

"You weren't completely correct, you know," the Doctor said, in a low voice.

"No?" she asked breathlessly, resting her hands on his bare shoulders. She felt him shiver and grinned.

"It wasn't that I didn't like the idea of getting wet and naked, I mean, half-naked with you," he admitted, stumbling over his words a little.

Rose's grin widened. "I see." Her eyes wandered to his chest, and she continued, "Just couldn't trust yourself, eh?"

"Well, I didn't necessarily mean that…" he sniffed.

"Yeah you did."

She felt his fingers twitch slightly against the side-ties of her bikini bottoms. "Well. Maybe a bit."

"You saying you notice, then?"

"Notice what?"

"Me."

"In what way?"

Rose rolled her eyes. "In the way a man usually notices a woman who is wearing a skimpy bikini."

She watched him gulp before replying to her. "Well, I mean, obviously there are certain…attributes of yours that are quite…noticeable," he began. He hurried on to add, "But! That's just – that's – it's – anyone would notice, unless their eyes weren't quite working properly."

"Attributes," Rose echoed, unimpressed.

"Yes."

"You gonna get any more specific?"

"Are you fishing for compliments?" he retorted.

"No – well, yeah, but only because you're so bloody elusive that I never know what's going through your head."

"I don't think you want to know what's going through my head."

Rose stared at him. He looked embarrassed at having blurted that out.

"Er, what I mean is…"

"Doctor," she said slowly. "Do you think inappropriate thoughts?"

"No!" he exclaimed, his hands reflexively squeezing her hips. He didn't seem to realise, and she liked his hands there, so she didn't say anything. "No, I just – no. I don't – Rose, I'm a Time Lord," he finished, sounding scandalised.

"You're also a man," she pointed out. "Who has eyes. And an imaginative brain."

"Yes, well," he blustered. "You're a woman with eyes and an imaginative brain. So what?"

"So, it's normal to notice things and think about stuff."

"Right. Well then." The Doctor cleared his throat. "I think you just answered your own question."

A slow, teasing smile spread across her face. "Care to share with the class?"

"No," he said quickly. "I - " He just looked at her for a few moments, and Rose wondered if he was coming to a decision. Then, he completely ruined it again by dropping his eyes to where his hands were positioned and, as if only just realising that he'd been holding onto her hips like that, he lifted them off her like he'd been burned. Scooting backwards onto his own lounger again, looking terrified, he mumbled, "I really should go and get dressed."

Rose rolled her eyes and stood up. "Fine. But just so you know, your imagination? Yeah, it could never be as good as the real thing." And with that remark, Rose strolled out of the pool room, making sure to sway her hips as she went. "Alien wanker," she muttered under her breath.


	17. Chapter 17

Later, when the four travellers were assembled in the console room again, the Doctor told them all to get ready for dinner at a fancy restaurant aboard the galaxy's poshest spacestation.

Mickey went for a shower and to find a smart shirt and jeans. Rose and Reinette went to the wardrobe room together to pick out dresses. The Doctor remained in the console room. He booked the reservation for their table, landed them in the right place, right time, then stood at the console screen for a while, scanning through files to find the menu for this particular restaurant.

As he was looking through the documents on the screen, he stumbled across his favourite folder. Rose periodically uploaded her photos from her camera onto the TARDIS computer system, so that they could access them from any terminal on the ship, including the laptop she'd sequestered as her own sometime last year. After obtaining her permission, he often looked through them when he was on his own and bored in the console room, after she'd gone to bed.

Many of the photos were of scenery. She took her camera with them whenever they went somewhere to sight-see, although strangely she'd been forgetting it lately. But some of the photos were of them, either individually or together – she'd hold the camera out in front of her, turned around so that the lens was on them, and click away as they pulled various faces: a very twenty-first-century human custom, he'd soon realised.

Or sometimes she'd get people to take a photo of them. He suspected that said people believed them to be a couple, for they almost always remarked on their apparent compatibility with words like 'lovebirds.' He didn't mind, and he couldn't exactly blame them. As he went through the photos now, he could see that they certainly looked as though they were more than just friends. Especially since his regeneration, because he'd been allowing himself more physical contact with her recently. It'd been a couple of months now, travelling with her with this face and body, and he knew she saw him as the same man as before. In fact, he reckoned they were closer than ever, no matter how much he'd tried to deter her at the beginning of last week, when she'd met Sarah Jane and he'd left a sentence unfinished outside a chip shop.

He sighed heavily, and stared at the photo he'd just flicked to. He'd taken this one. It was of Rose, twelve days ago, when they'd spent the evening with the Emperor of Durla. Well, he'd taken it when they'd got back from there, actually, when she'd been tired and leaning against him as they stepped into the console room after a night of dancing. She'd stumbled over to the jumpseat, a little tipsy, and declared that she couldn't possibly go to sleep yet. He'd quickly seized her camera and taken a snapshot, intending to show her just how tired she looked.

But when he'd pressed the button to take it, her eyes widened, and her beautiful, natural smile blossomed onto her face, and he was quite sure that he had nearly dropped the camera. A moment later, and she'd dozed off, but for the exact second that he'd had the camera on her, she'd been alert and dazzling.

He'd stared at the photo for ages, that night, just as he was doing now. Mind you, he thought, nothing could beat the real thing. She may look mesmerising when captured in photo-form, but it didn't compare to the way she looked in real life, animated and funny and cheeky. She'd been rather flirtatious, recently, too – and he suspected that it'd been rubbing off on him. He'd certainly made a few remarks that he shouldn't have that night, when she'd danced in his arms to assuage his jealousy (she had been eyed at by the Emperor all evening, and it made him feel decidedly not nice, so naturally Rose subtly told him not to worry with a well-timed waltz.) In fact, he was pretty sure he'd said something along the lines of it being him that 'got to take Rose home tonight.' Which was a bit suggestive. And also wonderful.

Plus, they'd been having these moments...Blimey, it was like he could barely keep himself from kissing her, half the time. And earlier, in the pool, with his arm wrapped around her - and then after, on the lounger, when he'd nearly -

He couldn't give in. He couldn't let himself give in, not when it would only hurt more when it ended, which would be all too soon. But blimey, it was difficult. Especially when she went around making remarks about his imagination being insufficient compared to the real thing. Bloody hell.

He swallowed hard, and clicked the next photo. Him, this time, asleep and drooling on the library sofa. Revenge, she'd said, for him trying to take one of her when she was sleepy. No matter that his plan hadn't worked and she'd still looked as radiant as ever. Oh well.

"Doctor?"

He jumped at the sound of his name. "All right, Mickey? Wow. You look smart."

Mickey winced. "Will this do?"

"Yeah, you look fine," he reassured him.

"Aren't you gonna change?"

"Um…I don't really do that," the Doctor replied, weighing up the pros and cons. "I mean, I could wear a tux I suppose, but…meh."

"Is the dress code really strict?"

"Well, there are unwritten rules, and you'd certainly get turned away if you turned up in shorts and a sunhat."

"Right," Mickey laughed.

"Which almost happened to me and Rose once, funnily enough. Not this restaurant – a different one. On Earth, actually. Anyway, we turned up out of the blue, and I flashed my psychic paper to get us a table, and the maître d' told Rose that no way would she be allowed in in her short denim shorts and vest top. She told him to shove it, of course."

"Naturally."

"Naturally," the Doctor agreed with a laugh. He glanced at the console screen, saw that he still had the photos up, and quickly exited out of them.

Reinette entered, then, wearing a floor-length, red silk, strapless gown.

"Woah," Mickey murmured.

The Doctor raised his eyebrows and inhaled a breath. "Reinette."

"Rose helped me pick it. Do you like it?"

"It's lovely," he nodded.

"Is it appropriate for where we are going?"

"You'll fit right in," he assured her. He searched for something else to say. "Your hair looks nice."

It was pinned up, with a few loose curls dropped down to frame her face. "Thank you. Rose did it. She's quite the master."

"She styles my hair sometimes, too," he agreed, before realising what he'd just admitted to when Mickey burst out laughing. "What?" he asked defensively.

"Nothing, nothing," Mickey muttered, still snorting with laughter.

The Doctor huffed. "Right, I'm going to go and hurry Rose along. We're already here, so I don't want to miss our reservation. You two feel free to go outside and sit in the waiting area – it looks out over the local planets; quite a sight."

With that pronouncement, the Doctor left the console room.


	18. Chapter 18

"Rose, I need some advice - " he said, entering her room without knocking, as usual.

Rose jumped around in surprise and the Doctor made a noise of alarm as he realised she was wrapped in a short fluffy towel and had nothing else on.

He quickly pulled the door closed a little, moving behind it so that he couldn't see her. With it partially open so that she could still hear him, he said, "Sorry, sorry. I was just, er, wondering if, um…"

"It's okay," she assured him. "What's up?"

"I, er…do you think I should wear my tux? Or should I not risk it, considering it's the Tuxedo of Doom?"

"Well that depends," she said, as she dropped her towel.

The Doctor distinctly heard the moment it fell to the floor; his hand clutched at his chest as he wondered why his hearts were beating too fast.

The whisper of fabric sliding over skin alerted him to the fact that she was putting on her underwear. He gulped.

"On what?" he squeaked out.

"Well, you do look dashing in it – but as you said, it's the Tuxedo of Doom, and it'll hardly be romantic if the other people in the restaurant turn out to be aliens filled with animosity."

"Romantic?" he snorted. "It's hardly going to be romantic, anyway, what with the four of us there having the candlelit meal together."

"Well if you want me and Mickey to sit on a separate table - "

He pushed open the door the rest of the way - so hard that it bounced against the wall. "What?"

She had her dressing gown on now, covering her underwear-clad body, and she was attempting to hook a dangly earring into her left earlobe, her head bent towards her dressing table mirror. "What?" she echoed.

"You – you just said that you want to sit with Mickey. Alone. For romance. That's what."

"No I didn't," she retorted, finally hooking the earring in and starting on the other one.

"Yes you did."

She completed her task, then turned to him, looking confused. He knew that his eyes were wide with alarm, and that his jaw was clenched. He was probably the picture of righteous indignation. Or jealousy. Or both.

"Doctor, I didn't say that. Mickey and me aren't together anymore, remember?"

"Well exactly. So, what, are you planning on – on – rekindling things? Because I have to warn you, Rose - "

"Warn me what?" she said, putting her hands on her hips.

"That – that – that, er…" he was flustered, now, and shaking his finger at her. "That romance-y stuff won't be tolerated on this ship."

"Romance-y stuff?" she burst out laughing.

"Yes," he huffed, trying to cover up his jealousy with purely prudish reasoning. "The TARDIS doesn't like that sort of thing happening where she can see it!" he fibbed. Truthfully, the TARDIS couldn't give two figs about what her inhabitants got up to, as long as they kept away from her console. Although he was pretty sure that, as her allegiance lay with him, she'd agree that it was best all round if Rose didn't get together with Mickey bloody Smith again.

"Doctor," Rose said slowly. "Listen to me very carefully. Mickey and I are over. We are not getting back together. Ever. He's my friend. That's it. There will be no naughty-business. All right?"

He swallowed hard. "Then why - "

"I'm not stupid," she answered.

"What? I know you're not. What's that got to do with anything?"

"Look, like you said, four people does not romance make. You and Reinette can sit on your own if that's what you're going for."

"I don't understand - "

Rose sighed loudly, and stepped over to him. She was standing so close that he abruptly lost his trail of thought and left his sentence hanging. "We need to have a chat," she said gravely.

His mouth opened and closed for a few seconds, then he replied, "Yes. I think we do."

"Right, we're gonna be late if I don't get dressed, so face that wall, would you?"

"Why?"

"Because I'm going to put my dress on whilst we have this discussion."

"Oh. Right. Okay." He dutifully turned around. "What's taken you so long to get ready, anyway?"

"Had to help Reinette first."

"Oh yes. I forgot."

"Did you like her dress?"

"Yes. She told me you picked it. Quite the habit you two have got going these days."

"Well, she wanted to wear…" Rose trailed off.

"What, Rose?" he asked curiously.

She cleared her throat. "She, er, she wanted to wear my blue dress. The one I wore a couple of weeks back. But I told her - "

"That she couldn't," he said roughly.

"Yes. I thought the red would suit her better."

"And the blue dress is your dress," he continued. He closed his eyes, remembering - for the second time this evening - the dance they had shared, the dress she had worn. No one else should ever wear it. Ever. His fingers twitched at his sides; sense memory, he supposed, of how he'd wanted to undress her the moment she'd stepped out of the wardrobe room looking so divine. He'd remember that moment for the rest of his life. Not that Rose didn't always look –

Now that begged the question. "Rose, what are you wearing tonight?"

"You'll see in just a sec," she said.

"Yes. Of course." No doubt she'd look as gorgeous and as untouchable as usual. He sighed heavily, wishing he were a braver man. A man who'd tell her things like that.

"So anyway. This chat we need to have," Rose said.

"Right."

"If you want to woo her, then eating dinner with your friends isn't the way to go about it."

He spun around. "What?"

She wasn't quite finished doing her dress up; it tied around her neck, so she had her arms lifted up as she struggled to get the right angle. He observed her for a split second before moving into action. He stood behind her, taking the satiny fabric from her hands and tying it for her. Once he'd finished, he gently turned her around, his hands lingering on her bare arms before dropping to his sides. They stared at each other in silence for a moment.

"Thank you," she murmured, her voice slightly hoarse.

"My pleasure." They both cleared their throats at exactly the same time; he almost smiled at their synchronicity. "Rose, why on Earth are you telling me to woo her?"

She shrugged, and he glanced down at her dress properly. It was a deep purple, and moulded to her curves, pushing her breasts up to create a bit of cleavage. Her shrugging motion caused them to jiggle, just a little. He met her gaze again and asked, "Why aren't you telling me to woo you, instead?"


	19. Chapter 19

Her breath hitched – he heard it do so. It made his eyes widen.

"I didn't think you wanted to," she answered. "Everytime you and me almost - well. It's obvious that you'll never go there. I've finally got the picture, all right? And I'm not exactly up for being rejected, _again,_ not by my best friend."

He took an involuntary step towards her. "Rose, you have to know that the only reason I…" he trailed off, squeezing his eyes shut. "The only reason that I can't be with you like I want to be is because I will lose you. Soon. Too soon. And it would be - " He let out a long breath then opened his eyes to gaze into hers. "It would be more painful than you can imagine."

She nodded. "Okay."

He frowned. "What?"

"I said, okay."

"I don't – Rose?"

"It's fine," she assured him, stepping back. "Really, it's fine. It would complicate things too much anyway. Especially now that Reinette's on the scene."

He sighed. "Rose, you're supposed to - "

"What? What am I supposed to do?" she demanded, raising her voice to him. He blinked at her in shock; she rarely shouted at him, and if she did, then it was usually whilst they were shouting at each other, in the midst of a heated row. A heated row in which he knew they both secretly wanted to translate that heat into something altogether more satisfying. Well, he did, anyway; perhaps it wouldn't be the basis of a _healthy_ sexual relationship, but he privately acknowledged that he never wanted her more than when she was passionately threatening to castrate him or some such.

But she'd certainly never shouted at him whilst he was trying to bare his soul to her. Not that he did that, regularly, but still.

"Seriously, Doctor," she continued. "What would you have me do? Because firstly, that's not – that's not your decision. In case you hadn't noticed, I don't like it when you tell me what to do. And secondly, to be honest, I'm at a loss. Because you reel me in and then you push me away and I'm - " She paused, gathering her breath, "- I'm tired of it. I don't even know if you _want_ me, Doctor, because your mood changes so bloody often. I mean, can you even have sex with a human, because as far as I can tell - "

"Rose," he interrupted her firmly, stepping into her personal space.

"What?" she snapped.

They stared each other down, both breathing heavily – Rose, from her exhaustion after her speech; the Doctor, from his effort to refrain from pulling her against him and snogging her senseless.

"I want you," he confirmed quietly. "I want you like I've never wanted anyone else. And it's killing me, Rose, because I can't – I can't - " He glanced away, faltering.

She looked at the floor, catching her breath, then mumbled, "We're going to miss dinner."

"What?" he asked, bewildered. How could she think about dinner at a time like this?

She sniffed. "Come on. The others will be waiting. You haven't got time to change into your tux, now, you'll have to go like that." She headed for her bedroom door, after saying all that without looking at him.

"Rose," he called after her. She froze. "Rose, please, just look at me a moment?"

Slowly, she turned and met his eyes again. "Can this conversation continue later?" she asked him softly.

He swallowed hard. "Can't we finish it now - "

"No." She shook her head. "No, I'm not ready to finish it now."

The Doctor met her by the door. "Okay," he replied gently. "Okay, we'll continue this later."

"Thank you."

He nodded, and reached for her hand. It broke his hearts a little when she hesitated before taking his.

::

"There you are," Reinette beamed at them, as they came out of the TARDIS.

Rose extricated her hand from the Doctor's and glanced around them. "Well, this is definitely the poshest place I've ever been. Except your palace, of course," she realised, turning to Reinette.

Mickey signalled for the maître d' to come over, clearly in his element. "We're all here now, mate," he said. The Doctor gave him a small grin.

The maître d' smiled pleasantly and made a sweeping gesture with his arm. "This way, if you please."

"So where have you two been?" muttered Mickey to Rose, as they were led to the table.

"Having a discussion."

"Which means a row."

"Maybe. A slightly one-sided one, if I'm honest."

"On your part, I suppose. The Doctor would never shout at you."

"Pffft, you'd be surprised," Rose retorted, but she had a smile on her face so Mickey didn't want to know any more.

Meanwhile, the Doctor had gentlemanly gestured for Reinette to follow Mickey and Rose first. She smiled at him, and before he could move, she looped her arm through his. "This is a truly wonderful place, Doctor. Thank you for bringing us here."

The Doctor glanced around the room. He wasn't so sure it was as wonderful as Reinette thought; he didn't really like how stuck-up some people in these places could be. Not all people, just some. But he smiled nonetheless. "You're welcome."

When the four of them reached their table, there was a brief moment of tension over the unspoken question: who would sit where?

Rose held her breath and waited for the others to decide.

The Doctor pulled out a chair for Reinette, who was standing closest to him, and before he had the chance, Mickey had spontaneously done the same for Rose. He looked at him in surprise. Mickey looked back as if to say, what, _you think I don't know how to treat a lady?_

The Doctor felt suitably abashed, and took a seat next to Reinette, glad that fortune had made it so that he was thus opposite Rose. It was better, he thought, to sit opposite her. Right? Because that way he could look at her and it wouldn't be too obvious. In fact, it was kind of expected that you'd look at the person right in front of your eyes. Right? Yeah, of course it was.

The maître d' left, then, and another waiter came to the fore to ask them what wine they would have. Before any of the others could get a word in edgeways, Reinette ordered from the menu, efficiently and without confirmation from anyone else. The waiter left to get it.

"I'm sorry," she apologised to the others. "But I am French. I simply had to order the wine."

Rose giggled loudly, then had to put her hand over her mouth when the people on the table next to them glanced over in alarm. She met Reinette's gaze and they shared an amused expression.

The Doctor and Mickey wisely chose not to say a word.


	20. Chapter 20

Dinner progressed quite favourably. Rose had exhibited none of her earlier ire towards him during the starter, anyway. She did kick him in the shin during the main course, when he'd teased her about ordering spaghetti bolognese; she always dripped sauce down her chin when she ate that, but apparently it wasn't wise to bring that up amongst friends, as the bruise to his leg would no doubt attest.

By dessert, though, the four of them had drunk quite a lot of Reinette's well-chosen wine. The mood was lightened further by them all sharing stories – something that wasn't deterred by the differences in class or occupation - nor age or species, with regards to the Doctor.

He knew they were in trouble, however, when Rose poured out her fourth glass of wine. Previous research had led him to deduce that Rose reached her peak levels of flirtatiousness after the fourth glass, even when they were amongst company.

His suspicions were proven correct when he felt Rose's foot slide up his calf. He choked on his profiterole. This was quite the change from the swift kick he'd received earlier.

When he glanced at her in alarm, she just gave him a sultry smile and sipped some more wine. What was she doing, trying to seduce him over dessert? She knew they still had to finish their conversation from earlier in the evening –

Oh. Maybe she was playing a game. To see how he would react. Yes, that seemed more likely. And maybe she was just as scared as he was, of where their conversation would end up. And _maybe_ she was picking up on the fact that Reinette had occasionally touched his arm during dinner, leading to her thinking that she ought to make her own presence felt more distinctly. He was sort of absolutely fine with that.

She picked up her spoon and ate some more of her chocolate gateau, making sure to moan a soft "mmm" of approval at the taste. For his benefit, he was sure, for it hadn't been loud enough for anyone else to hear. Then she sucked at the spoon, her cheeks hollowing, determined to remove every last spot of chocolate. He met her eyes, and tried to wordlessly convey to her that he needed her to stop being so delicious.

A bit of chocolate was still on her bottom lip. He wanted to lick it off. Luckily, she beat him to it, and the sight of her tongue –

Oh. God.

He tried not to watch her face as she ate. It was too seductive and tempting. Unfortunately, it meant that his gaze unconsciously refocused on her chest, and then he felt like a right pervert. True, they were breasts to be admired, but he shouldn't treat her like that; like she was just a woman to be gawked at. He diverted his gaze again, and stared at her hair.

He'd like to run his fingers through it. See it fan out across his pillows. Feel it tickle his face as she hovered over him.

No.

He couldn't give in. He kept telling himself that: he couldn't give in. Didn't she get that? Didn't she get that no matter how much he wanted to make love to her and fuck her and all the variations in between, he just couldn't, because it would make losing her so much more difficult -

And _Rassilon_ had he really just thought that word? A shiver went through him, more of delight than anything else. How very human of him. He must've picked it up from Rose; she did tend to let out the 'f' word now and then, most often when she'd hurt herself.

He tested it out again in his head. _Fuck._

Inappropriately, he wanted to say it. He wanted to say it right there and then, to see what she would do in response – would she find it as sexy as he did when _she_ said it? Would she say it in bed, gasp it into his ear as he drove into her over and over…

He wanted to see how his lips would form around the word. It would be satisfying, he thought, what with that clicky consonant at the end. But not nearly so satisfying as it would be to _actually –_

"Doctor?"

He jumped in surprise as he realised they were all staring at him. Reinette touched her fingers to his hand and he jerked his away, running it through his hair. She didn't appear to notice his abrupt refusal of her contact, and simply repeated herself, "Doctor? Are you all right?"

Yes, he was very all right. Rose had her foot halfway up his leg and he was thinking about hoisting her over his shoulder and running with her back to the TARDIS. Or maybe just outside the TARDIS, to that lovely wall with the Van Gough painting hanging on it. Or _maybe_ to the wide window in the waiting area, where he could fuck her against the glass whilst looking at the planets surrounding them.

Oh blimey, he was utterly barbaric. What had come over him? It must be the wine. It was very good, very French wine, after all.

"I'm fine," he insisted with a smile. Rose arched an eyebrow and he knew, he just _knew_ , that she knew what was going through his head.

Oh wouldn't that be something, he thought of suddenly. Her, in his head, whilst they –

Ohhhhh. He wished that they could try that.

He shook his head to clear his errant thoughts. "Sorry, what were we talking about?" he asked the others.

"We were talking about the fact that you've not finished your profiteroles. We're all done," Rose said, gesturing to their plates. "You appear to be distracted, _Doctor."_

Holy Rassilon's Pants, did she have to say his name like that?

He loosened his collar and tie a bit, feeling rather hot and bothered. This shouldn't be happening. He absolutely should not be thinking such naughty, naughty thoughts.

Then Rose flashed him that grin. The one with the tongue and oh heavens the corner of her mouth. She was going to kill him. Slowly. Wonderfully. Amorously.

"I think I'm going to go to the restroom," he found himself muttering, and then he found himself scraping his chair back, brushing away their concern, and legging it for the loo, all before he knew what he was doing.

Inside the men's toilets, which he vaguely noticed were as posh as the rest of the restaurant, he braced himself against the sink, staring into his own reflection in the mirror. "What are you doing?" he asked himself aloud. "Why are you even thinking about her like that? This is just – no. No. You can't. You _can't."_

He closed his eyes and berated himself. He was usually able to keep this sort of thing under control. He had command over his own blood flow, for Rassilon's sake - and a good job, too, or else the billion times he'd hugged and danced with Rose would have been mighty awkward – so he should be able to control his own thoughts.

Not that he never thought about it. In fact, he probably thought about sex with Rose a bit too much, but rarely had he fixated on it in such depth as to forget where he was and zone out of conversation. He was usually much better at multi-tasking.

He opened his eyes and met his own gaze. "Right. You're going to go back out there and act like everything's fine. Because everything _is_ fine. And you're going to stop thinking about bending Rose Tyler over the table and licking the remainder of your chocolate sauce off her naked body. Okay? Okay." He let out a long breath. He could do this. He could.

He glanced down. Thank goodness he still had control of _that._ It was at times like this he was glad he wasn't a human bloke. No erection here, not unless he wanted one. How embarrassing would that have been, he wondered, if he'd had to go back into the restaurant with one of those? This was nothing compared to that. He was fine. He was safe. It was all in his head. No one would know. Except possibly Rose, but she didn't count, because she could read him like a book anyway.

_Right. Back to the table. Finish dessert. Go back to the TARDIS. Absolutely do not shag Rose. Finish the conversation. Don't give in._

That was the plan. And he was determined to stick to it.


	21. Chapter 21

When he returned to the table, the three of them all eyed him suspiciously. Actually, no – Reinette and Mickey eyed at him suspiciously. Rose just laughed, and smiled at him like she had a secret.

Mickey didn't seem to see a correlation between the Doctor's visit to the bathroom and Rose's hysterical giggling fit, for he explained to the Doctor, "She's drunk. She burst out laughing when Reinette said something completely unfunny. No offence Reinette."

"None taken," she replied with a shrug, then looked at Rose in concern. "Perhaps the wine was too strong for her."

"I'm still here, you know," she hiccupped, waving her hand at them.

The Doctor tried not to smile at her antics, but it was impossible. She rarely had too much to drink, but when she did she was a very happy drunk – he knew this from previous experience as well as from now. And he enjoyed it when she was enjoying herself, which was why he never saw anything wrong in her sampling the alcoholic beverages time and space had to offer. She knew that if she got a little drunk, like she was now, then he'd look after her. And she also knew that however strong the attraction between them, he'd never let them do anything untoward unless she was sober.

Well, he'd never let them do anything untoward when both of them were sober, either, but that was beside the point.

"Perhaps we should go back to the TARDIS," Reinette remarked.

Mickey nodded his head in agreement. "Yeah, I think that's a good idea."

"But we haven't had dancing, yet," Rose said, frowning adorably. The Doctor felt something loosen inside his chest at the sight.

"Dancing?" Mickey asked, looking alarmed. "No one told me there was gonna be dancing."

"What sort of dancing is she referring to?" asked Reinette.

"What does that mean?" asked Mickey.

"I want to dance," Rose announced, standing up. She grabbed the Doctor's hand. "You'll dance with me, won't you?" He stood, too, aware that people on the other tables were looking.

"Where, Rose?" he asked her quietly.

"There's a room next door where there's dancing, I heard one of the waiters telling that lady with the big hat about it," she said, a bit too loudly. The lady with the big hat looked over and scowled. Rose shrugged her apology. "You shouldn't wear hats indoors, it's rude," she informed her wisely.

The Doctor chuckled and guided Rose out of the room, gesturing for Mickey and Reinette to follow. As they passed the maître d,' the Doctor handed him the payment for their meal.

"I hope everything was to your satisfaction, Sir Doctor?"

"Oh, it was splendid, thank you. We've had a lovely time." He tightened his grip around Rose's waist as she stumbled, and he realised she was muffling her giggles into his shoulder.

"Sir Doctor," she muttered. "Oh, I like it."

"Well, what was the point of getting knighted by Queen Vic if I don't get to use it, hmm?"

"Good point," she replied. "Look, see – dancing." She pointed to the ballroom situated in the next corridor. "Please can we? Just for a little bit? I am Dame Rose Tyler of the Powell Estate, after all…" Her eyes were big and hopeful and of course he said yes. She squealed in delight and kissed his cheek before dashing into the room.

He stopped still, and touched his hand to his cheek. Then he realised what he was doing and shook his head at himself. Honestly. What was she turning him into?

He followed her into the ballroom, barely registering the fact that Mickey and Reinette were walking alongside him.

"I don't think this is such a good idea," Mickey was saying, bringing the Doctor out of his reverie. "She'll probably embarrass herself. And us."

The Doctor stopped again, and turned to Mickey. "What?"

"I said she'll probably embarrass - "

His jaw clenched tightly. "No, I heard what you said. I just couldn't fathom why you'd say it."

"What?"

"She's happy and having fun, Mickey; what's wrong with that?"

"Nothing – it's just, amongst all these posh, refined people - "

"So what?" the Doctor snorted. "So what if they are. Rose can do what she likes. She shouldn't have to answer to these sorts of people anyway, just because she wasn't born into wealth like them."

"That's not what I mean, Doctor," Mickey snapped. "I completely agree with you about that, of course I do – I'm from a council estate myself, for god's sake. What I mean is, Rose's inhibitions may be gone at the moment, but in the morning, when she remembers making a fool of herself in front of all these people, in front of you and Reinette, she's gonna feel terrible. Because it doesn't matter how things should be. All that matters is how they are, and how Rose feels because of it."

"What?"

"She feels inferior, Doctor, because people treat her that way. Of course she shouldn't have to feel embarrassed by getting a bit drunk; but her bravado is just that: bravado. When she remembers how these people look down their noses at her, then she'll feel about two feet tall."

The Doctor gaped at Mickey in shock. "She – no. No, that's not - " He paused, letting Mickey's words sink in. "She really feels like that?"

"Yeah, I think she does, yeah."

He swallowed hard. "I don't want her to ever feel like that again."

"Well it doesn't help that you just toss her aside the moment someone classier and cleverer comes along," Mickey snapped, then looked shocked at what he'd just said.

The Doctor frowned at him. "I wouldn't do that."

Mickey ceased to feel apologetic for snapping just then, instead rolling his eyes. "You idiot. You already did."

"I - " the Doctor started to defend himself, but then Reinette stepped over from where she'd been conversing with Rose and interjected, "Doctor, she's waiting for you to dance with her. She said that after that we can go."

Mickey looked pointedly at Reinette, and the Doctor came to a startled realisation. "No, I haven't – I wouldn't - " he stammered.

"Doctor?" Reinette said.

He cleared his throat. "Right. Yes. I'll just go and…" he trailed off as he walked over to Rose.

There was a moment of silence. Then, "I think I've realised two things that neither you nor Rose have," Reinette told Mickey quietly, as the pair of them watched the Doctor step up to Rose and whisper in her ear.

"What's that?" Mickey huffed, still annoyed with the Doctor's obliviousness.

"He'll never look at me the way he looks at her," she stated, in a matter-of-fact manner.

Mickey turned to her in surprise, opening his mouth to speak.

But Reinette quickly continued, "And I believe he is so in love with her that he's frightened to do anything about it."


	22. Chapter 22

The Doctor held Rose tightly to him as he navigated their way through the gaps on the ballroom floor, afraid that if he let her go she'd stumble over her own feet. Her arms were looped around his neck, and his were around her waist, and they weren't strictly speaking doing the same dance as everyone else. He bent his head, resting his cheek against hers. "You've completely forgotten how angry you are with me, haven't you?" he whispered in her ear.

"Of course I haven't," she retorted. "I may be a bit drunk but I'm not stupid."

"Oh," he muttered. "Then why were you being so…delightfully seductive during dessert?"

"Wanted to get you thinking."

"Well you certainly succeeded in that."

"Thinking about me and you, I mean."

"Yes. That's what I said: you succeeded."

"About how we _could_ be, I mean. If you weren't so scared of losing me."

"Rose," he said impatiently. "I was thinking about every which way I could possibly let you corrupt me, and vice versa. All right? You most definitely succeeded."

Her eyes widened. He felt her fingers curl into his hair slightly. "Oh," she murmured. "Oh good."

He couldn't help but laugh. "You're so…"

"So what?"

"Wonderfully you," he finished.

"That's not a proper answer."

"It's the only answer you're going to get," he countered.

"I'm not as drunk as you lot think I am."

"I'm starting to realise that."

"I was playing up to it to get you alone."

"You could get me alone without pretending to be tipsy."

"Not on the dancefloor, I couldn't, and not in public, where you're unable to escape at the drop of a hat."

"I still would've danced with you had you asked soberly."

"Well there was a chance you would've, yeah. But you indulge my whims more when I'm drunk, so that you can look after me properly when I'm 'vulnerable.'"

"So…are we resuming the conversation, then? Right here in the middle of a ballroom, with loads of posh idiots dancing all pompously around us?"

"Doctor," she chided gently. "Don't be rude."

"Pfft, they're the rude ones. Mickey told me how you feel. When people like this look at you like they do. I want you to know that you are so far above them they can't even see you properly."

"Doctor," she said softly, quite unable to say anything else. She evidently hadn't expected him to say such a thing.

"I've met some wonderful people in my lifetime, Rose Tyler, but no one has ever been as compassionate as you."

"Is that my defining trait, then? Compassion?"

"Compassion, yes. And passion all on its own," he couldn't help but smirk.

"Well you haven't seen the half of that."

"No, I haven't, have I?"

"You want to, though."

"Yes," he confessed softly, his lips at her ear again. "Yes I do."

"But you think that you can't."

"I know that I can't."

"You're so daft. It would be so incredibly easy for us to change things," she said. "And it'd be for the better. I wouldn't ask anything more from you than what you wanted to give."

"That's the problem. I want to give you everything."

"Doctor."

"Rose," he countered.

She sighed, then drew her head back so that she could meet his gaze, and slid her fingers further into his hair, stroking the back of his head softly. "Tell me what you would do, if you could. If you could allow yourself to do anything you wanted. What would you do?"

"What would I do?" he asked, with a gulp. "With you, you mean? To you?"

"Mmm," she nodded.

"I'd…" he sighed wistfully as he closed his eyes. He leant forwards and pressed his forehead into hers. "I'd kiss you," he whispered.

"And?"

"I'd kiss you everywhere," he continued, nuzzling her nose slightly. She held her breath. "Your mouth. Your neck. Every bit of bare skin I could reach."

"And?" she murmured breathlessly.

"And I'd pull you against me," he breathed out roughly. He moved his head, resting his temple against hers so that he could whisper in her ear again, not wanting anyone to overhear his words, "I'd slide my hands down from your waist to your bottom, and use it as leverage to keep you close."

"Do it," she whispered back.

"No."

"You want to, though."

"I wish I could."

"What else do you 'wish you could?'" she prompted, vaguely aware that they were still in the middle of the ballroom; they were barely dancing, now, just swaying back and forth. She suddenly remembered Mickey and Reinette, but she couldn't bring herself to open her eyes and look for them. She did wonder, though, if they were watching. What would they think?

"I wish I could take you to bed," he answered in a low voice. "I wish I could undress you and kiss every uncharted inch of you. You've no idea, Rose, how much I want to explore you. You are like the most tempting unseen planet; an undiscovered continent. An adventure waiting to happen." His breath was hot and quick across her ear as he whispered. She shivered in his arms and a ghost of a smile touched his lips. "I want you to shiver and shudder just like that, and I want to touch you in ways no other man will ever do again."

Her hands tightened their hold of his hair in reaction to his words. He pressed his lips together and held in a moan, fairly sure this wasn't the place to make such exquisite sounds of pleasure.

"Blimey, Rose," he whispered hotly. "You are going to kill me."

"Do you think about me?"

"You know I do. We had that discussion by the pool."

"Well, sort of," she snorted. "You barely admitted anything."

"I think about you," he assured her. "I think about you all the time."

"Where?"

"Hmm?"

"Where do you think about me?"

He swallowed. "You mean..."

"Do you think about me when you're in bed?" she murmured quickly.

The Doctor's hands clutched at her waist, fisting in the material of her dress. "Bloody hell, Rose."

"Do you?" she persisted.

"Yes. Yes. Of course I do."

"How often?"

Her chest was heaving against his with every breath she took and he had to close his eyes again to steady himself. "Nearly every night."

"I think about you, too."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. God, Doctor. You drive me mad."

"I know. I'm sorry."

"So many times you've nearly...and it's left me...argh, you know what I mean."

"Yes, I do. Believe me, I do. It leaves me in the same boat, you know."

"But if you'd just let it _happen_ -"

"I can't."

She sighed. "I know."

"I want nothing more than to give in, Rose. To show you how much you mean to me. But it's too much, it's too...it's too difficult. I'm not human." He held onto her tighter. "I wish I could be human for you."

"I don't want you to be human," she said softly. "I've never wanted that. I never want you change yourself completely like that. All I want is for you to follow through with the things you nearly do. Because the hot-and-cold act, it's...it's so difficult to live with, Doctor."

"I've been selfish, I get that," he replied. "I've tried to pull you closer and push you back simultaneously, and I'm aware how awful that is, I just - I couldn't stop, I kept telling myself that I had to stay away from you in that regard, but then you'd say something or do something or just be there and I'd ache for you, it's...Rose, it's so hard."

Rose chuckled wryly. "Is it? Never seems to be from where I'm standing."

He was confused for a second, not knowing what she meant, but then she pressed her hips into his and he realised. "Oh! Oh, right. No, um. I can control that, luckily."

"You can?"

"Yep. Handy Time Lord quirk, that."

"That _is_ lucky."

"It really is. The amount of times I would've embarrassed myself in front of you if I wasn't able to control that, honestly..."

"So you never let yourself?" she murmured, turning her head to whisper in his ear so that no one read the words on her lips. "You never let yourself get hard?"

The Doctor growled under his breath. "Didn't say _that_. Just meant that I keep things controlled when I'm in public or around other people."

"So when you're on your own, and thinking about - about - "

"You," he confirmed for her, brushing his cheek against hers.

"- then, you..."

"Yes."

She buried her head in the space between his neck and shoulder, and he felt a smile stretch across her face. "Good," she mumbled.

"Oh, you like that, do you?" he chuckled.

"Yeah. I used to think about you doing that whilst _I_...did that."

He groaned at the image that brought up in his head and he wrapped his arms fully around her to get her as close as possible to him. "Rose."

"Yeah?"

"We really should stop talking about this."

"I s'pose," she agreed reluctantly. They carried on swaying back and forth though, silently, enjoying what remaining time they could spend in each other's arms.

"I think the music's stopping," she whispered a few minutes later, opening her eyes. Most of the dancers had left. The band members were packing up their instruments. She cleared her throat and dropped her hands from his hair to his shoulders, squeezing gently. "Doctor. Doctor, they're stopping. Everyone's leaving."

The Doctor's eyes blinked open slowly. He tried to focus, but thanks to Rose he was entirely preoccupied with the feel of her against him.

"I think we should go," she whispered next.

He jumped, as though snapping back to reality. "Oh. Right. Yes, of course." He let go of her and glanced around him. "Mickey and Reinette must've gone back to the TARDIS."

Rose swallowed guiltily. "We got carried away. _I_ got carried away. I'm sorry."

He met her gaze in confusion. "You've nothing to be sorry for," he murmured. "Nothing at all."

"But I'm just making it worse, aren't I?" she said sadly. "You're never going to let yourself do all those things you want to do, and I'm just making it worse for us both by trying to push you." She shook her head. "I shouldn't…"

"Rose, stop worrying," he said, taking her hand. They walked together out of the ballroom, towards the TARDIS, both a bit unsteady on their feet after their emotional and rather erotic few moments on the dancefloor. "I say all that stuff in my head anyway. Admitting it to you makes no difference."

"Really?" she asked disbelievingly. "Because hearing it made me want it even more."

He stopped walking, just outside the TARDIS, and turned to face her properly. "Rose - " he started, but she interrupted him.

"Just tell me one thing," she said quickly. "Before we go back in the TARDIS and pretend this never happened, like we always do. Just tell me one thing?"

He nodded slowly, his hearts in his throat. "Yes?"

She let out a shaky breath, and asked, "If you can't let yourself have all that with me, does that mean you're going to do those things with her instead?"


	23. Chapter 23

The Doctor blinked at her in shock. "You don't seriously believe that that's why I asked her to come with us, do you?" he asked her, dumbfounded. "I thought I'd explained to you quite clearly that nothing like that had happened between Reinette and I."

Rose shrugged uneasily. "I knew that you had an instant connection with her, so at first I thought you and her would be…together, like that…but then when she told me about her and the King, I wondered if maybe you two couldn't…but then I thought that maybe it would be different with you and so you _could_ , and – and, well. I don't really know what's been going between you two, do I? Privately, I mean. You told me you weren't...doing that sort of thing, but how could I believe you after what you said in the library?"

"What?" he asked, brow furrowing. "What did I say in the library? When?"

She sighed heavily. "That day you saw me leave the library and thought I was _leaving_ -leaving. I _had_ heard some of your conversation. She was asking you why you wouldn't get up the courage to tell me about you two."

"What? No she wasn't, Rose."

"I heard her say it - "

"No, you assumed that's what you heard. Rose, I was telling you the truth that night. Well, not the whole truth, but I was certainly telling you the truth with regards to Reinette. She told me about your drunken chat, and she asked me what I wanted from her and I told her that I didn't want anything like _that_ from her. She was confused, so I had to explain why, and _that's_ what she was telling me to tell you. My explanation about why I would never sleep with her. Or anyone else, for that matter."

"Oh," Rose mumbled. "Then...well, what, then? What's the explanation? Superior Time Lord superpowers?"

His lips quirked upwards and he shook his head. "Rose, I think I've made it pretty clear this evening why I could never do that with her."

"What, because you want..."

"You? Yes."

"But you won't ever let yourself have that with me, so why not with her? I mean, she's a pretty good alternative, right? Some might say a more appropriate choice, to be honest, and - "

"Don't say things like that."

"But she _is_. She's so much cleverer than me and - and she's capable of giving you so much. I know she'll die young and everything, but seriously, I don't understand why you wouldn't want to make the most of her whilst she's still here. She's a _courtesan_ , for goodness' sake, I mean, what guy would resist the temptation of that? You're living with someone who could - argh, you know all what she could give you. So really, it's no wonder I'm surprised when you insist you haven't or won't or don't want to. I can't get my head around that."

"Rose, stop this. Please stop it. I like Reinette a lot, I do, she's lovely. But I don't want to – I don't want to _be_ with her. In any sense of the word. And she knows that. Besides, she isn't daft. She knows I wouldn't – couldn't – ever be kept away from you. And so I reiterate, just to clear up _any_ misapprehension or lingering doubt: we haven't - and I wouldn't have, ever. That's not on the table, and it hasn't been, and it'll never be. Not with her."

"But she's beautiful - "

" _You're_ beautiful."

"- and refined - "

"And what good's that?"

"- and intelligent - "

"You are smarter than you ever give yourself credit for, Rose Tyler."

"- and accomplished - "

"You may not sew or garden or play an instrument, but you've got skills that far surpass them. Like saving the universe, for example. And swinging from chains. And deposing tyrants. And standing up for the ordinary people, doing what's right, taking a stand."

"- and she saw into your _mind_ , Doctor."

"I didn't ask her to."

She paused. "…oh."

"In fact it was a bit rude of her to go looking without asking," he shrugged. "But I guess she wasn't to know that."

Rose swallowed hard. "But she saw how lonely you are." She sighed sadly. "That's what's got to me the most, I s'pose. The fact that she said you were lonely then, as a child, and lonelier now."

"She meant because of my lost people, Rose. In my head, it is lonely. I used to hear their presence; it's silent, with them gone. That's all she meant. She didn't mean that you aren't enough to combat that with everything you are."

"But you danced with her. And you kissed her. And -"

"And that's absolutely it. That's all. I promise you, Rose. You are the only one I want."

"And there's nothing I can do to persuade you that you can have me?"

He stared at her silently for a few seconds. "I…Rose. You'll leave me, someday. That's the root of the problem. I can't start something more with you only for you to change your mind one day and leave. And you can't promise, in this moment, that there won't come a day when you do. And that's not even factoring in the fact that I could lose you in a different way…if you – if you -"

"If I died," she finished for him.

He swallowed and nodded. "And however far away that day is, I…I'll have to go on, without you, remembering, always, and I don't think I could do it. I don't think I could bear living without you after living _so much_ , in the most fundamental of ways, with you, for so long. Forever is a long time to remember, Rose."

"But Doctor, forever is also a long time to regret."

He stilled.

With those words, so quietly and tenderly spoken by her in a tentative appeal for him to reconsider, something shifted inside his chest. Perhaps his left heart skipped a beat; or maybe it was his right one that stopped for more than a moment. But whatever it was, he felt like something had changed, fundamentally, within his very core.

Because the fact was, his gorgeous, wonderful Rose had a point.

Rose could tell that her words had made him pause for thought, so she hurriedly continued, "I mean, think about it. If I were you I'd rather have to live with a head full of memories of us being together, than have to live with a head full of memories of us denying our…well, our desires. Imagine getting to that point, eighty years from now, and thinking: I wish I'd just taken a chance. Thinking: I was wrong. Thinking: We should have tried."

"Stop it," he suddenly gasped out, his voice rough. She realised that he had tears in his eyes, so she did as he asked and stopped talking. "Just…just wait, for a second, please," he continued in a whisper.

It was a pivotal moment. Both of them realised it. What would happen in the next few seconds would determine their entire future. And somehow he had to trust himself to make the right choice; the right choice for them, and the right choice for his future self.

He loved her. Oh, blimey, he loved her. With or without anything more, he loved her. That fact was as fixed as a fixed point in time and space. His love for her defined him. His love for her had _made_ him into this man he was today - quite literally. The very fact that he loved her could not, would not, change, or else the rest of him would unravel.

On the one hand, he could keep it to himself. Never show her. Never tell her. Just hope that somewhere deep in her heart she knew, and go on as friends.

That was the kind of self-preservation tactic he'd thought he'd employ. He'd thought that that would be the best way, the way of minimising the inevitable pain when he had to say goodbye to her.

But then Rose had mentioned the word 'regret.' And she was right. She was so, completely right. After all, didn't he already have a mountain of regrets when it came to her? He regretted every moment that he'd hurt her, unwittingly or otherwise. He regretted every moment that she'd spent thinking he did not care about her the same way she cared about him. He regretted every moment that they'd shared in which it was obvious that she thought he'd kiss her and he hadn't done so.

Most of all, he regretted never telling her that he loved her. How would that regret feel, amplified by years and years and years? How would he feel, a few decades down the line, knowing that really, he'd never been worthy of holding her hand, for he had never reassured her of his feelings?

And then there was the possibility that she could leave him _because_ he couldn't express to her how much she meant to him. And even if she stayed with him, if she really, properly stayed for as long as her life gave her, how would he feel having deprived her of a proper, loving relationship, all because of his own stupid cowardice?

He felt sick right now, even contemplating the extent of the pain that regret would cause him. At least, if he could tell her, if he could love her like she deserved, he would know that their lives together hadn't been in vain. At least he would know, in the sorrow of her being gone, that they'd grasped every piece of happiness possible together.

But what if someone used his love for her to hurt them both? What if he got her killed prematurely because of it? His enemies would be able to tell how much she meant to him, and then -

Then again, it wasn't as if that Dalek hadn't already been able to tell all those months ago in van Statten's museum, and that was before any of this dancing around the topic of their love for one another had occurred. It was probably before she had even reached that point herself. He was painfully aware of the fact that he'd loved her far longer than she had loved him; or at least, he had realised it earlier.

"Doctor, _please_ ," Rose whispered. "We've been fighting this for so long."

He blinked, then wiped hastily at his cheek as he felt a sneaky tear descend. Sniffing, trying to compose himself, he reached his shaking hands towards hers, and grabbed them, holding on tightly.

"Rose," he murmured.

He'd made his decision.


	24. Chapter 24

He hoped she would agree. He hoped they could make it _their_ decision.

"Rose," he said again, when she didn't reply.

Her throat tightened with emotion. "Yes?" she finally got out.

"I've…I've changed my mind."

"You've…what?"

He saw the hope rise in her eyes and it fuelled his courage. He knew he was being spontaneous with this rapid change of heart, but he also knew that it wasn't irrational. "You're absolutely right, as usual. Regretting is completely and utterly worse than remembering. I was daft to think otherwise."

"So…what are you saying?" she murmured, unable to hide the excitement in her voice.

He smiled. "Rose."

He didn't get any further, because abruptly the TARDIS doors opened, making them jump in surprise. Mickey poked his head out. "Oh! There you are. I was just going to come and find you. The taps in the kitchen won't turn off."

The Doctor was not amused. "What?"

"The taps. They won't turn off," Mickey repeated, the noticed the way the Doctor was gripping onto Rose's hands. "Oh. Sorry, did I…interrupt something?"

"No, it's okay," replied Rose.

"Yes," growled the Doctor, at exactly the same time.

They glanced at each other in surprise. "He did," the Doctor protested, in the face of Rose's denial.

"It can wait until you've fixed the taps. Besides, I need a wee."

He raised his eyebrows. "Oh, how very romantic."

"Well, I do," she laughed, pushing past him to go into the TARDIS. "I'll meet you in the galley in a mo."

The Doctor glared at Mickey. "Well done."

"What?"

"I was just building up to something magnificent, and you go and interrupt," he tsked, as he made his way to the galley.

"Not my fault the taps are broken," he huffed. "Would've thought your ship would've been able to fix 'em herself."

"Would've thought you, with your ample skill as a mechanic, as well as being an odd-job man for Jackie, would've been able to fix them no problem," the Doctor huffed back.

"Look, you should've gotten your act together about Rose ages back. Don't pin your bad timing on me."

"Yes, well." The Doctor had nothing much else to say in response to him other than that.

::

Rose, on her way back from the bathroom, heard Reinette call out her name. She headed in the direction of her voice – she was in the library.

Pushing the door to the library open, Rose wasn't really thinking about what Reinette could possibly want to talk to her about. Which was why the topic of conversation, when it arose, was such a surprise.

"Rose," Reinette smiled. "Do you have a moment?"

"Yeah, sure. What's up?"

"Would you come and sit with me? I would like to speak with you about something."

Rose squinted suspiciously but came over to the sofa that Reinette was gracefully perched on, sitting down next to her. "Okay. Go ahead. What is it?"

Reinette took her hand. "I would you like you to know something."

"Okay…"

"It's about the Doctor."

Rose stiffened. "Right."

"I believe that I thought, when I was younger, that my spontaneous and very brief visits from him made me…special," Reinette spoke, with care to choose the right words.

"Well, you are," Rose assured her.

Reinette laughed, just a little, in her refined and ladylike way. "Oh, Rose."

"Look, what are you trying to say?"

"I kissed him, once. He was so mysterious and so…handsome. And so I kissed him. But you must know that this was before I knew…"

"Before you knew what?" Rose asked, her voice slightly scratchy.

"Even once I'd met you, Rose, I didn't really think – I assumed, what with Mickey being with you, that it was the pair of you who were together."

Rose smiled, a touch self-deprecatingly. "You can say it, you know. You can tell me the truth."

"What do you mean?"

"You called me a child," Rose replied carefully. "And you talked to me as if I was trapped in some sort of unrequited love with him. You knew. You just didn't think he could possibly love me back, because I'm ordinary. Because I'm not elegant, or beautiful, or intelligent." She didn't really know where these words were coming from, they were just spilling out. She thought perhaps she needed to say this, in order to clear the air between them completely. Because no matter how nice Reinette was, she _had_ made Rose feel small. She had made her feel inconsequential to the Doctor. And she had called him her lonely angel. And some of that wasn't at all Reinette's fault; in fact, it was all the Doctor's fault. But she had been tactless on occasion, and it had hurt.

Reinette's eyes widened during Rose's speech, and she gripped her hand tighter. "Rose, no. I didn't - "

Rose raised her eyebrows.

Reinette sighed. "I admit, perhaps I was so caught up in what I thought was my fairytale romance, that I didn't stop to consider that maybe he was not free to be my prince."

"He's not anyone's prince," Rose snorted. "I think the problem is, at the end of the day, the Doctor can be a dick."

Reinette reeled back. "I think that is an insult, is it not?"

"Oh yes. He is, fundamentally, a good person. But that doesn't mean that he can't be a bastard. You put him on a pedestal and called him an angel. And that's – that's not your fault. I've put him on a pedestal for a long time, too. But I've come to my senses, now. He's just an ordinary bloke. He takes us across the universe and shows us amazing things, but that doesn't mean he isn't flawed. And boy does he make mistakes."

"That is, I suppose, what I'm trying to say. I have realised that – that I was wrong," Reinette murmured. "I believed myself to be a little in love with him, and I thought that maybe over time he would love me, too."

Rose swallowed hard. "I thought he already did, so I don't blame you."

"But how could you have thought that? How could I have thought it was even a possibility? It feels like I have known him all my life, yet he has known me but a few days. And the way he speaks to you, the way he _looks_ at you – the way he forgets that myself and Mickey are even in the same _room_ as the two of you…" Reinette sighed. "At dinner, he couldn't keep his eyes off of you. He barely glanced at me. I was naïve to think there was anything tangible remotely connecting the Doctor and I."

"I'm…I'm sorry," Rose offered, because she didn't know what else to say. She knew what it was like to be caught in the Doctor's orbit.

"What's more, I do not think I belong in this world. This world of space and time. Not only do I have my own life on Earth to consider, but I just…I don't light up, the way you do, when the TARDIS moves to another place. I don't belong here."

"You've only been here, what, a little under a week?" Rose said. "You might change your mind about that when you've been here a bit longer, a fortnight, a month - "

"Rose, I was enchanted by him because he seemed perfect, and he was trying to save my life. Do you know, that, I believe, is the root of the feelings I had for him: he was trying to save my life, and in doing so, it appeared that I was the focus of someone's attention. It has been so very difficult, these past few years, watching the man I love – I speak now of Louis – take his pleasure with other women, knowing that I can never give him that. Knowing that as I grow older, he may lose what remaining interest he has in me. I've had to have paintings commissioned, you know – to remind him of my beauty. I get the artists to disguise the fact that I am ageing, all because I fear the King discarding me like he did to others before me. I used to think he loved me above even his wife, the Queen, but…oh, I do not know. It was novel, and brilliant, to have the Doctor focussed on me as he tried to solve the problem of those clockwork things. I haven't been the sole focus of a man's attention for many years, and it made me feel different, and wonderful. But that, as I said earlier, was before I knew that I really, honestly, _wasn't_ the centre of the Doctor's universe. You are. And you always will be."

Rose blinked back tears. She didn't know how to respond, so she just pulled Reinette into a hug, and held on tight.

"It's all right," Reinette murmured, hugging Rose back. "You do not have to feel sorry for me. I have been cruel to you."

Rose pulled back and met her eyes. "No, you haven't. Not at all. And I'm sorry too."

Reinette smiled, and gave a shrug. They hugged again. "The wealth and the accomplishments and the elegance… the influence I have over a King…you know that it means nothing, Rose, don't you? It means nothing, compared to true love, and kinship, and the meeting of souls. Of course, I love all that, I do – as much as it makes me sad that I cannot be freer, that I cannot have that true love for myself – I do love my life, and all its courtly duties. I am good at it. And it has been all the more illuminated for me by travelling so far away from it. But my point is, just because you have never lived like that, it does not make you deficient in some way. Certainly the Doctor never looks at you as though you are lacking anything. Indeed, I do believe he looks upon you as a...hmm, what is the word? I know! A beacon."

"A beacon?" Rose laughed, as she pulled back from Reinette and wiped at her eyes.

"A beacon of light, and hope, and reverence."

"Now you're putting _me_ on a pedestal," Rose protested.

Reinette shook her head. "Perhaps you are too self-conscious to see it, but anyone outside of the bubble of you and the Doctor can tell. Now tell me, did you get your dance with him this evening?"

Rose smiled. "I did, yeah."

"And did he realise that you were not as drunk as you were pretending?"

"Yes," Rose laughed. "Thanks for keeping my secret by the way." It had been what the two women were discussing in the ballroom, when Mickey and the Doctor were having their argument. Rose had confessed to Reinette, and Reinette had played along thenceforth.

"It is fine," Reinette laughed back. She stroked Rose's hair back from her face in a motherly way. "You ought to go to him. He must be wondering where you are. I'm sure you have much to do."

"Thank you, Reinette," Rose said earnestly.

Reinette just smiled.


	25. Chapter 25

The Doctor was fidgeting. He’d fixed the taps. Mickey had gone to bed. And so here he was, waiting alone, in the galley. Why hadn’t Rose come back yet? She said she’d meet him in here after using the loo. So why was she taking so long? 

Had she changed her mind?

His leg jiggled restlessly as he sat at the table. His patience was next to nothing at the best of times. Now, he was…oh, he was aching for her to return, so that he could finish telling her what he’d started to before Mickey had interrupted them.

Just as he was getting ready to jump up and go in search of her, Rose entered the galley. She was smiling nervously, and tugging at her earring. He grinned in what he hoped was a reassuring way, and stood up, coming to stand in front of her.

"Rose," he murmured.

"You haven’t changed your mind again, have you?" she asked quietly. "It just occurred to me that leaving you on your own with your thoughts may have taken us back to square one."

He shook his head. “I thought perhaps you were getting cold feet, hence why you took so long.”

"Oh, yeah, sorry." She realised that she’d been waylaid and had forgotten to tell him why. "Reinette wanted to talk to me."

"Oh?" he asked, curiosity piqued. "What about?"

"You and her." His eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "About how there isn’t really a you and her," Rose clarified.

"Oh," he replied. "Well, you knew that already, didn’t you? Didn’t you, Rose?"

She half-shrugged. “I s’pose.”

He sighed, and drew her into a hug. “Do you trust me?” he whispered into her neck.

Her arms squeezed his middle tightly. “With my life.”

"What about with your heart?"

She buried her smile in his shoulder. “Yes. Okay.”

"How long will you stay with me?"

"Forever," she murmured, drawing back to look him in the eye.

He tilted his head forwards, bumping his nose against hers playfully. “In that case,” he whispered, giving her a heart-stopping smile before pressing his lips to hers.

His hands came up to cradle her head as he coaxed open her mouth. They kissed deeply for several long moments, before Rose pulled back to catch her breath. Her eyes, when she opened them, were shining with happiness, and the sight made him grin stupidly at her.

Dropping his hands to her waist, he drew her even closer to his body. “I’ve wanted to do that for a very long time,” he told her quietly.

"Oh, me too," she assured him. "Are we really doing this, then? Not just this one kiss, but the whole shebang? Are you sure this is what you want?"

"Rose Tyler," he breathed out roughly. "I’d like to invite you on an adventure."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah."

She looped her arms around his neck, sliding her hands into his hair. He loved it when she did that. “And what will this adventure entail?”

"There won’t be any swimming or bikinis," he gravely informed her. She sighed in mock-disappointment. "In fact, there may not be any clothes at all. And I doubt there will be any trouble, but there might be a bit of mischief.”

She grinned. “I like the sound of it so far.”

"I bet you do. Would you care to accompany me to somewhere that isn’t the TARDIS galley?"

"I’d be delighted."

He released her and held out his hand. She took it in hers and squeezed it in anticipation.

"By the way," Rose said, as they made their way down the corridor. "You told me that the TARDIS didn’t like ‘romance-y things’ happening in this ship."

"Did I?" he asked innocently.

"You did, yeah."

He sniffed. “I must’ve been referring to romance-y things of a specific nature.”

"And what specific nature would that be?"

"Romance-y things between you and Mickey."

"Ah, I see. So the TARDIS is quite picky about this sort of thing, then."

"Oh yes."

"But she’d be fine if you and me…"

"Undoubtedly."

"Right," Rose nodded with an amused grin. "I understand."

"Good," he said cheerfully, then shouldered open his bedroom door. "I presume you don’t mind my choice of location?"

"Not at all," she assured him. "Whenever I’m in here I think about how nice it would be for you to throw me on that big four poster bed."

He blinked at her wordlessly for a moment after shutting the door. She noticed that he locked it, too.

"Was that a hint?" he asked, coming towards her with a devilish glint in his eye. "A request? Or an order?"

"It can be whatever you want it to be," she replied, arching her eyebrow in challenge.

He growled under his breath and quite spontaneously lifted her into his arms.

"Woah!" she laughed, hooking an arm around his neck to hold on. "You are stronger than you look.”

"I am," he agreed, and stepped closer to his bed. "Now, you said ‘throw.’ I’m not entirely convinced that that’s not a bit caveman-like."

"As if your thoughts haven’t been erring towards that end of the spectrum of late," she scoffed.

He raised his eyebrows. “How would you know? For your information I’ve only had gentlemanly thoughts of making love to you.”

She smiled at him with that smile she smiled when she knew he was lying. “Yeah, right. Do you want to know a secret, Doctor?”

"What’s that?"

"I was watching your lips during dessert this evening."

"Well, I’m sure you were. You couldn’t take your eyes off me," he grinned.

"No, wait, you’re missing the point. I was staring at your lips when you said something under your breath – or at least, you mouthed the word. The other two didn’t notice, don’t worry."

He frowned in thought. “What word?”

"I’m guessing that it was accidental, then."

“What was?”

She whispered in his ear.

He nearly dropped her in surprise. “Oh! But I was just – I was just thinking about how it would sound if I said it. You know how I love testing out new vocabulary.”

"But why were you thinking of that word in the first place?" she pointed out.

He tilted his head to the side, contemplative. “There’s not really any way I can get around that question, is there?” he surmised.

"Not really, no," she giggled.

He dropped her onto the bed with a bounce, then quickly flopped down next to her. “Okay, so maybe my thoughts diverted from the gentlemanly quite rapidly,” he confessed.

"I knew it!" she squealed, rolling onto her side. She unbuttoned his jacket so that she could put her hand on his chest, splayed right in the middle - she could feel the rapid beat of both hearts against her fingertips. "Is it different?" she asked quietly.

He’d been staring at her adoringly and had to ask her to repeat herself. “Sorry, what?”

"Is sex different for you? Should I be expecting anything…a bit more, er…alien, than what I’m used to?”

"Oh! Um. No. No, the only vital difference is that I can regulate my, er, blood flow."

"Okay. So, um." She gave a nervous giggle. "Sorry, this is a bit more awkward than I expected."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. I s’pose I sort of thought that we’d find it easier to talk about this, considering all the…lead-up."

"Anything you want to ask, Rose, just ask," he said softly, reaching his hand up to cup her cheek. "It’s just me. I’m hardly going to laugh at you or something, am I. Especially as I’ve got some questions of my own."

"You have?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Why so surprised?"

"Well, you are over nine hundred years old.”

"Yes, but I don’t know what you want, in terms of this…activity.”

She giggled and snuggled into his side. His arm came around her and held her close. She sighed happily. “Let’s start with some more kissing,” she murmured.

"That’s a very good place to start," he agreed with a smile.


	26. Chapter 26

The kissing thing, on its own, lasted barely three minutes before Rose was eagerly tugging at his shirt buttons.

“There’s no rush,” he chuckled into her neck, dragging his lips down to her collar bone.

“I know,” she mumbled, fiddling with his tie, an unnecessary obstacle in her quest. She attacked his shirt buttons with renewed vigour once the tie was tossed aside. “I just - I want to touch you.”

“Didn’t you have another question for me?” he pointed out, trailing his lips up the other side of her neck before nipping gently at her jaw.

“Didn’t you have a question for me?” she countered.

“Okay then. I’ll go first, if that’ll make things easier for you. Tell me what you expect.”

“Thought we’d covered that.”

“No, I don’t mean compatibilities, I mean, what do you expect from sex itself?”

She pushed at his shirt and jacket, and he helped her manoeuvre them off. “Nakedness,” she retorted. “Pleasure…”

He rolled his eyes and grabbed her hands, guiding them to his hair. She grinned and eagerly ran her fingers through it, enjoying the way his eyes closed in pleasure. “I knew you found it arousing when I styled your hair,” she chuckled.

“You still haven’t answered me properly,” he mumbled distractedly.

“That’s ‘cos I don’t know what you mean.”

“I mean that sex is different, isn’t it, for different species and different eras, even, and - ”

“But you said - ”

“Oh the mechanics of it are the same,” he assured her. “The basic foundations…they don’t differ between Time Lord and human. What I mean is, the other stuff.”

“The other stuff? What, like…foreplay stuff?”

“Mmm.”

“Oh. Well.”

He looked at her. She was blushing. He didn’t think he’d ever seen her blush quite so prominently before. He smiled. “I thought twenty-first century humans were open to discussion about this sort of thing. I’m sorry if I’m embarrassing you, I don’t mean to. But you’ve no need to feel embarrassed.” He stroked her back reassuringly. “Believe me, I’m more scared than you could possibly be right now.”

“I’m not embarrassed,” she murmured, meeting his loving gaze. “It’s just…I s’pose I’m not used to being asked. Most people just assume, don’t they, what the other person will or won’t like. Or at least, in my limited experience, that’s what it’s been like.”

He didn’t really want to think about her in this situation with her other boyfriends, but he nodded understandingly. “I see.” He paused. “You don’t have to say out loud, you know. If it’s too difficult, just show me. I want to make this perfect for you, that’s all.”

“Thank you,” she said softly. Her hands left his hair to trail down his chest. He shivered and she grinned. “Maybe you should undress me.”

His eyes lit up. “Now that, Rose Tyler, is a very good idea.”

He untied her dress from around her neck, and his hand then travelled down her side to find the zip. Once loosened, the dress came away easily; Rose lifted her hips so that he could tug it down her body, and then he leaned over her to place it carefully on the chair next to his bed. She was left wearing her strapless bra, which he gazed at in admiration, and her lacy purple knickers. “Didn’t know you owned such delightful garments,” he murmured appreciatively.

Rose giggled and tugged at the waistband of his trousers. “You next. I want to see if my theory is proved correct.”

“What theory’s that, then?” he asked, as he unzipped his trousers and pushed them down his legs.

“Ah yes,” she smiled, once she spotted his boxer-briefs. They were TARDIS-blue in colour. “Thought so.”

He smirked. “You’ve been thinking about what kind of pants I wear?”

“Maybe. On the loneliest of nights…” she teased with a flirty grin.

The Doctor leant over to give her a peck on the lips, then trailed his fingers along the bare skin of her stomach. “You’ve seen me naked before, Rose.”

“I know, but I tried not to look.”

“Really.”

“Yes! We were in prison! It was just a – a performance to get them to find us, I didn’t use the opportunity for…nefarious means.”

“Really?” he repeated.

“Why? Did you?” she faked a gasp. “Doctor, were you looking?”

“I couldn’t help it!” he said defensively. “And I’m not buying this line that you didn’t. When the person you have the hots for is naked in front of you, there’s gonna be at least a _little_ perusing of the goods.”

“Doctor!” Rose laughed.

“What? Don’t deny it any longer, Rose Tyler.” He grinned, and kissed her chin. “You’ve no idea how much I wanted to have my wicked way with you that day.”

“Very romantic location, a prison cell,” Rose scoffed.

“Mmm, well…”

“S’pose it would’ve been more authentic, for the purpose of getting the guards to come in.”

He chuckled. “Indeed.”

“Noticed you weren’t keen to strip off the second time we used that trick, when Mickey and Reinette were there.”

“Well, you’re the only person who has seen this body naked, and I’d like it to stay that way.”

“How sweet,” she laughed, her hand wandering down his chest. She ghosted her palm over his nipple and he tilted his head forwards to kiss her again.

“What would you like me to do next?” he whispered.

“Mmm, now there’s a question.”

He kissed her again, before moving his lips to her neck. “Well?” He nibbled tenderly at her collar bone and shifted downwards. “This okay?” he asked, cupping her left breast in his hand, as his thumb stroked the gentle swell that ever so slightly over-spilled her bra cup.

“Yes,” she said breathlessly.

“What about this?” he asked, tugging her bra down to enclose her nipple with his mouth.

She arched into him with a gasp. “Yes.”

“Marvellous invention,” he murmured, as he moved to her other breast.

“What?”

“Strapless bra. Genius.”

She giggled and reached her arm underneath herself to pop the clasp. He grinned and chucked it on the floor.

“You are so beautiful,” he whispered, meeting her eyes.

“Well you’re quite dashing yourself,” she whispered back.

He pressed his lips to her sternum, then travelled a path downwards. She giggled when he reached her belly button. “Ticklish?”

“A little.”

He swiped at the skin beneath her navel with his tongue and she shivered. His fingers grasped the waistband of her knickers. “Rose? Would you like me to…” He glanced down to indicate his meaning.

Her breath hitched. “I…no one’s, er…before. I haven’t…”

“It’s fine if you don’t want me to,” he said earnestly, pressing a kiss to her hipbone.

She bit her lip. “You’re so good with your mouth, though,” she blurted out. “I thought that maybe, if you wanted, you…could. Because I think I’d like it.”

He looked delighted. “Yeah?”

“Yes,” she said, her cheeks flushing red again. For all her bold teasing outside of it, she did seem adorably shy _in_ bed.

He slowly edged down her knickers, watching her chest rise and fall rapidly in anticipation. Once he’d pushed them down to her knees, she kicked them off the rest of the way. The lacy garment fell to the floor, forgotten, as he moved on the bed to get into a comfier position.

“Raise your legs up slightly,” he requested softly. She complied, but her expression conveyed her nervousness at having him so close to that part of her anatomy. Neither Jimmy nor Mickey had ever paid quite such close attention to it, after all. He stroked her thighs tenderly in reassurance.

“Everything, er.” She cleared her throat and tried again. “Everything as you expected?” She wasn’t one to follow the twenty-first century trend of particularly fancy personal grooming, but she kept herself reasonably tidy down there. Still, she wasn’t sure what he was used to.

“Perfect,” he simply whispered, then began his task, sliding his tongue through her folds and up to her clit, alternating between swirling lightly and sucking.

“Oh!” she gasped, her hips rising off the bed. He chuckled at her pleased reaction, and held onto her hips to keep her still. “Oh my god. Knew you’d be good at this.” He chuckled again, and the vibrations of it against her enhanced her pleasure. “ _Jesus_.”

She watched him for a moment, utterly transfixed by the sight. It was so surreal. She’d hoped that they would become intimate with one another, but she’d never quite prepared herself, in those daydreams and fantasies, for the sight of the Doctor’s head between her thighs. And when he dipped his tongue inside her, the way he made her _feel_ –

Her head flopped back against the pillows and she squeezed her eyes shut. This. Was. Fantastic.

“Might have to make this a – a regular occurrence,” she managed to gasp out.

He paused and looked up at her with a cheeky grin. “It would be my honour.”

“Don’t stop,” she whimpered.

He resumed what he’d been doing, with even more enthusiasm than before.


	27. Chapter 27

“I’m never gonna be able to look you in the eye again,” Rose joked a little while later, as she panted for breath.

The Doctor had crawled back up her body and deposited himself next to her, taking in her flushed appearance. “Success, then?”

“Definitely. Couldn’t you tell?” she laughed.

“Well you certainly seemed to enjoy it, yes.”

“As did you.”

“I did, yeah,” he grinned. And licked his lips. Her heart stuttered.

“Why?” she asked, genuinely curious. “It’s not like you were getting anything out of it.”

“Are you joking? It’s my new favourite activity.”

“But why?” she persisted.

“I can’t explain it in words,” he tutted at her as though she were silly to ask such a thing. “It’s just…I dunno, making you happy makes me happy. And making you make those noises, well…it’s very arousing.”

She reflected on that. “Yeah, I s’pose it would be.” Then she smiled naughtily and pushed herself up on her elbows. “Shall I return the favour?”

He stared at her for a moment, uncomprehending. Then it dawned on him, and it was his turn to blush. “Oh! Oh. Well. Um.” He cleared his throat. “Only if you want to.”

She nodded. “I do, yeah.”

“Okay,” he replied quickly.

Rose reached down and cupped him through his pants, before muffling his squeak of surprise with her lips against his, in a brief but firm kiss. “Take these off for me,” she whispered hotly against his mouth.

She leant back to give him space to wriggle them off, then slid downwards on the bed. The Doctor, watching her as she moved, looked like he was going to spontaneously combust.

“Hmm,” she murmured, as she eyed his cock.

“What?” he asked warily.

She met his eyes and bit her lip before responding, “Nothing. It’s just.” Her cheeks were pink again. “You’re quite…”

“What?” he prompted.

“Big.”

He squinted at her. “Is that…going to be a problem?” he asked hesitantly.

“No not really,” she assured him. “Just…uh…it’s been a while, and…” She wasn’t sure how to phrase it.

“When we…I’ll be gentle, Rose. I promise.”

She gave him a dazzling smile. And then she bent her head and took him in her mouth and the universe narrowed down into one tiny point of exquisite, breath-taking pleasure.

“Oh blimey,” he gasped, his eyes rolling back in his head. “That’s – um. That’s really quite – oh.”

She released him for a moment to smile happily. “You like that, then?”

“I’d no idea it would feel this…good,” he sighed.

Rose resumed her movements with her mouth, then added her hand to the mix.

“Yes,” he hissed. He clenched the duvet with his hands in an effort not to thrust up into her mouth. “Oh Rose.”

She lifted off again to smirk at him. “Bet I can make you come quicker than I did,” she murmured.

His eyes nearly popped out of his head at her sudden audaciousness. “Oh you do, do you?” he retorted.

“Yep,” she replied, popping the ‘p.’

“Then by all means give it a go,” he said, sounding smug. “But I’m a Time Lord, Rose Tyler. Better self-contr-” he started to add, before swearing in Gallifreyan as she took him back in her mouth.

He needed to touch her. He propped himself up with one arm so that he could reach his other hand towards her, slipping it into her hair – not to guide her movements or crassly move her head, but simply to stroke rhythmically though the golden strands, hoping to regain his equilibrium. “You’ve no idea,” he panted. “Just how good you are at this.”

She did something magical, then, some sort of twist or flick or – he didn’t really care what it was, but it felt amazing. He flopped back to the mattress, groaning incoherently for a few moments, before murmuring, “Actually, Rose, I think you might be right.”

She didn’t stop.

“No, really, Rose, you are very close to winning your bet right now,” he said warningly.

She increased her pace.

“Ah – ah, Rose – Rose, you might want to, um - ” He sat up again, trying to reach for her shoulder to pull her back, thinking it would be terribly rude if he were to come to his release whilst she still had her lips wrapped around him.

But then it was too late, and he was coming, and she was –

blimey.

Staring at her with wide, wild eyes as he tried to catch his breath, he watched Rose wipe her chin and climb up the bed towards him.

“You – you - ” he mumbled. He couldn’t believe it.

“Hmm,” she said ponderingly, as she settled next to him and flung her arm across his chest.

“Wh – what?” he stammered.

“You, er, taste different to how I expected,” she told him quietly, reaching her free hand up to push his hair back from his forehead.

He couldn’t stop staring at her in amazement. He gulped. “Good different or bad different?”

“Oh, good different,” she said earnestly, leaning in to nuzzle his nose. “Definitely good different.” She kissed his cheek and then snuggled into him. “Dunno if that’s just you or your Time Lordiness. Perhaps it’s your diet. Must be all those bananas you eat,” she joked.

“You’re ridiculous,” he replied affectionately, pressing his mouth to her forehead.

“Mmm, you love me anyway,” Rose said, before she realised the presumptuousness of her phrasing. They both froze. She gently cleared her throat. “I didn’t mean to say that,” she whispered, scared of meeting his gaze.

He didn’t say anything in response, and Rose closed her eyes, kicking herself internally for coming out with something like that. She hoped it wouldn’t make him retreat.

But, pleasantly surprising her, the Doctor did the exact opposite of retreat. Slowly, he slid his hand down her side, raising goosebumps across her skin, before slipping it between her legs, stroking the sensitive skin of her upper thighs. Her eyes popped open. As she was lying on her side, she raised her right leg the tiniest amount to encourage him further, and a second later he’d taken the hint and slipped two fingers inside of her. Her lips parted in pleasure.

“All right?” he murmured into her hairline.

“Mmhmm,” she mumbled back, quite unable to add anything more constructive.

It appeared that the Doctor was very good at multitasking, for it wasn’t long before his thumb found her clit; in tandem with his fingers moving in and out of her, he rubbed the bundle of nerves in small, circular motions, causing her to moan softly and move against him.

He trailed his nose down to her temple, bending his head so that he could then press a kiss there. “Look at me,” he requested in a warm, low voice. She lifted her head to meet his eyes. He kissed his way along her cheek and jaw line to her lips, seizing her mouth for a deep, slow snog.

Her hands – one still in his hair, one clutching his shoulder – tightened their grip. When the kiss faded out, she whispered, “Can I just say…so far, this is the best night of my life.”

His eyes glistened with happiness. “Oh, Rose. Me too,” he whispered back.


	28. Chapter 28

By the time he’d brought Rose to her second orgasm of the evening, the Doctor was hard again. Wordlessly, she moved onto her back, and he followed, hovering over her. They stared into each other’s eyes as she reached down to grasp his erection and guide him into position. A quick adjustment of the angle of his hips and he was slowly entering her, his mouth falling open at the sensation.

They both fought to keep their eyes open, wanting to capture the other’s reaction into their minds forever. “Okay?” he checked, in a whisper.

“Yes,” she answered, before her jaw went slack in pleasure.

He breathed out roughly. “Ohhh, Rose.” He scrambled for purchase on her thigh, lifting it up; she quickly cottoned on and wrapped her leg around his waist. He slid in further. “Fuck,” he hissed, quite unable not to.

Rose noticed this, and grinned. “Ha,” she laughed weakly. “You said it.”

“You feel…” he trailed off, not completely aware of how to finish that sentence. His intellectual vocabulary was swiftly abandoning him.

“It’s good,” she mumbled in appreciation, her hands clutching the pillow beneath her head. She was grateful he was easing her into it; she’d never been with anyone so…well-endowed, before. Not that he was abnormally so - it was just that her personal experience was limited, and it’d been a while since, well, anything.

He inched out of her a little bit but before he could thrust back in fully, her eyes widened in alarm and she sat up, nearly knocking him off her.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, in a panic. “Did I hurt you?”

“No, it’s nothing like that, sorry,” she assured him quickly, clutching his shoulder for support. “It’s just, I forgot to ask…I’m not on the Pill or anything, do we need to, um…”

He scrambled for his ability to reason, and thought things over. “I – I don’t think we could conceive naturally, but I’m not…I’m not entirely sure,” he admitted. “I’m sorry. It didn’t even cross my mind. I’m an idiot.”

“Oh. Then maybe we shouldn’t risk it,” she murmured, sounding very disappointed. “I don’t…I don’t want a baby, Doctor. Not now. Maybe not – maybe not ever.”

“Right,” he nodded in understanding. “So, um. Shall we stop?”

She closed her eyes regretfully. She couldn’t believe it. She didn’t want to stop, but if neither of them had any protection…

Her eyes popped open as a thought struck her.

“What? What are you thinking?” he asked curiously, recognising her I’ve got an idea expression.

“I…” she started, then she shook her head. No. It was an awful idea. She couldn’t do that. It would be…it would be really, seriously wrong.

“Rose?”

She felt ridiculous, half-sitting up, the Doctor still partly inside her, and there was her thinking that maybe her ex-boyfriend would have some condoms to hand.

She was an awful human being.

“Nothing,” she mumbled. “I just thought for a moment that Mickey - ”

He raised his eyebrows. “Don’t think about Mickey whilst we’re having sex, Rose. Please.”

She couldn’t help but laugh. This situation was so surreal. “No, I was just thinking that maybe he brought some condoms with him.”

His eyebrows climbed even higher up his forehead. “And why would he have done that, if not to seduce you?” he asked, seemingly rhetorically for he didn’t allow her time to answer. “Listen, Rose, remaining in this position is getting a little bit hard, if you’ll pardon the atrociously untimely pun, so please could you tell me what we’re going to do?”

Rose rolled her eyes. “Well, have you got any ideas?” she demanded. “Because I’m not being funny but I really want to finish what we’ve started, and the possibility of Time Lord babies is kind of the deal-breaker right now.”

“I could…pull out, at the last moment?” he suggested, feeling like a teenager.

“Oh yeah, ‘cos that’s a fool-proof system,” she muttered sarcastically. “What if you get lost in the moment and forget, anyway?”

“Well I’m sorry but I don’t happen to have contraception just lying around,” he huffed. “I haven’t even done this for a couple of hundred years, and not with a human. And I didn’t exactly plan for this to happen tonight, did I? In case you’ve forgotten, I was quite determined for us not to do this - ”

“There is no way that I am getting into an argument with you whilst we are in this position,” she interrupted firmly. “Especially as you don’t seem to be losing your…ardour anytime soon.”

He sighed heavily. “After all we’ve gone through tonight, all your persuasion and my crumbling defences, are we seriously going to have to abandon this before we’ve properly got started?”

She shrugged, then offered, “I could give you another blowjob instead, if you want.”

“Rose.”

“It was just a suggestion! I am currently one orgasm up, after all.”

“I like the way you’re not even remotely embarrassed about talking about this anymore, when earlier you couldn’t stop blushing.”

“Well having a conversation like this with you still half-way in kind of takes the embarrassment out of the equation and throws it right out of the metaphorical window, don’t you think?”

“I’ve no idea what you just said,” he said slowly. “But I’m going to kiss you for a moment because you’ve no clue how beautiful you are when you’re ranting about something, okay?”

She gaped at him and he quickly captured her lips in a quick, soft kiss. Her arms instinctively looped around his neck and they just sat there, holding onto each other, foreheads together, breathing against each other’s parted lips for a few long seconds.

Then Rose came to a decision. “Right,” she said firmly, letting go of him and scooting backwards. He slipped out of her and they both sighed momentarily at the loss. “Screw this for a game of soldiers,” she muttered, and jumped off the bed.

The Doctor, bewildered, contemplated the perplexities of English sayings whilst watching her grab his dressing gown off the back of his door.

“I’ll be right back,” she told him, and then disappeared.

He sighed and flopped onto his back, hardly able to believe tonight’s turn of events. Then he laughed. This was actually so typical of them, he thought. And although he was incredibly eager to make love to her, he couldn’t help but grin at how truly hilarious something that should’ve been so awkward had turned out to be.

He was telling the truth, earlier, when he’d told Rose it had been a couple of centuries. And to be honest, he couldn’t really remember what it’d been like, before, with people who weren’t Rose. But of one thing he was certain. Sex had surely never been so interesting.

::

Rose crept through the corridors, her arms wrapped around herself to prevent the shivers. The Doctor’s dressing gown was large and fluffy, but it wasn’t quite thick enough to combat the fact that she was very naked beneath it and the TARDIS had her heating turned down in the corridors at night.

Her mission was this: sneak into Mickey’s ensuite, check his bathroom cabinet for condoms, get out of there as fast as possible, and most importantly do not let him wake up.

She knew it made her a terrible person. But she decided that she’d have to accept that, because no way in this universe was she about to let the Doctor get out of making love to her, in case by the time they went shopping he’d changed his mind.

She quietly edged open Mickey’s door and sneaked in. A cursory glance in his direction to check he was asleep, and she was making her way to his bathroom. Fortuitously, he’d left his bathroom door open and the light on, so she easily slipped inside and reached her destination. But when she opened the cabinet, she couldn’t see any of what she was searching for. “Bugger,” she whispered to herself. She glanced around her, wondering if he had any anywhere else.

“Rose?”

Oh shitty shit.

She turned around and plastered a smile on her face. “Hi, Mickey,” she said cheerfully, as if her standing there in his bathroom was nothing out of the ordinary.

He was sat up in bed, staring at her in confusion with a sleepy expression. “What are you doing?”

“Nothing, don’t worry. I was just, um…” She grappled around for an idea. “I was just checking to see if your sink’s taps were working. I think the TARDIS is having a bit of trouble with her plumbing, what with the galley ones being on the blink earlier and everything.”

“Oh,” he mumbled, rubbing his eyes. “And you had to do that at this time of night?”

“Hmm? Oh, well, mine were just playing up, and it’s best to check these things straight away, eh? Don’t want a flood, after all!” she laughed falsely, then gestured to the door. “But yours seem fine so I’m just gonna go - ”

“Rose?”

She froze. “Yeah?”

“Can I ask you a personal question?”

“Um…okay…?”

“The Doctor said that I interrupted you two in the middle of an important conversation, earlier. I suppose I was just, um, wondering whether you managed to…finish it?”

“Sort of,” she shrugged. “Why?”

“Oh, no reason,” he blustered. “It’s just…well, Reinette said…”

“What?” Rose prompted impatiently.

“I suppose, what I’m trying to ask is, are you two going to get together? Properly?”

Her eyes widened and guiltily flickered away from him, unable to meet his gaze.

“Oh. Right,” Mickey said, taking a guess from her reaction. “You already are.”

She cleared her throat. “Um, sort of.”

“So you didn’t come into my room naked under a dressing gown for anything saucy, then.”

“No.” She pulled the dressing gown even tighter around herself, wondering how he knew she was naked beneath it. She was pretty sure he didn’t have x-ray vision. Then again, her expression was probably indicating her guilt very obviously, so perhaps it was an educated guess on his part.

“Right. Thought as much.”

“Sorry, Micks.”

“It’s all right. I’ve known for a while that you’re in love with him. I suppose I just thought, what with the whole Reinette thing, maybe he’d lost his charm a bit, in your eyes.”

“Well…” Blimey, this was awkward. “Thing is, Mickey, I think he loves me back.”

“Yeah. I think he does too,” Mickey said softly.

Rose smiled, a tad uneasily. “I’m gonna go back to bed, now. Night Mickey.”

“Night, Rose.”

Sure, they’d been broken up for a while now, but as she shuffled out of his room she couldn’t help but feel like a right bitch. And she was still no closer to finding any –

Oh!

With a startled gasp she remembered something, and ran to her bedroom. Yanking her travel bag out of her wardrobe, she pulled out some random knickknacks from home that her mother had put in there last time they visited; mementos, she’d said, so that she didn’t forget the flat. As if she could! She had to keep them in the bag specifically to stop herself feeling homesick and missing her mum too much.

Anyway, as she dug through the bits and bobs inside, she came across the toiletry bag that would be their salvation.

Thank goodness for Jackie Tyler.

She opened it up and inside, amongst a few spare shampoo bottles, was the thing she’d forgotten seeing her mum carefully put there with a stern, motherly warning ‘not to trust anything that daft alien says’ a couple of months ago. Rose squealed in delight, plucked the packet from the bag, and ran next door, her excitement reinstated.

“Guess what I found!” she called out happily, as she bounced back into the Doctor’s room.

He was lying on the bed, beneath the duvet now, and his eyes lit up once he saw her.

“A single, solitary condom,” she murmured reverently, as if it were the most precious treasure in the universe.

“Where did you find that?” he asked in amazement, staring at it with the same level of affection as she came over and sat beside him on the bed.

“Well, I’ve had quite the quest. I went to Mickey’s room - ”

“No, no, no, nononono,” he said hastily, drawing away from her. “It is ethically wrong to use your ex-boyfriend’s supply of -”

She rolled her eyes impatiently and interrupted him. “Yeah, well, I couldn’t find any in there anyway, and after a really awkward conversation with him when he accidentally woke up, I legged it out of there and then remembered that Mum subtly put this in my toiletry bag a while back - ”

If anything he looked even more disturbed by this news. “Your _mother!_ ”

“Yeah. I don’t know why she only put one in there. Maybe she thought that I’d experience one session with you and be put off by the alien-ness of it or something,” she shrugged.

He stared at her in mortification.

“Anyway! Point is that we have one glorious go, courtesy of this.” She waved it in his face. “Then we can go shopping tomorrow and get a jumbo pack. Yeah?”

“Well,” he muttered, still huffy about her previous comment. “That is if you’re not put off after one session.”

“I don’t think that’s gonna happen, don’t worry,” she laughed. “Doctor, have you any idea how long I’ve waited for tonight? I was not prepared to give up in a hurry.”

He looked between her and the condom several times before flinging back the duvet. “Right then!” he announced, with a sudden smile. “This better be worth all the trouble you’ve gone to!”

She gasped at him in mock-horror. “Do you have any reason to doubt that it’ll be anything less than spectacular?”

“Not really, no,” he grinned devilishly, then lunged for her. She giggled helplessly and he planted a series of kisses up her neck and across her face before seizing her mouth in a passionate snog.


	29. Chapter 29

“Take two,” he murmured cheekily, before thrusting into her, condom firmly in its rightful place.

Neither of them was inclined to take things slowly this time, and she quickly wrapped her legs around his waist to spur his movements on. “All right?” he asked distractedly, as he moved back and forth.

“Yes,” she murmured. _“Yes.”_

He bent his head to kiss her. Shortly after, Rose rolled, pushing him onto his back. “My turn on top,” she grinned. He let out a loud groan and she quickly put her hand over his mouth, giggling, “You’d better be a bit quieter or you’ll wake the other two up.”

“What have I told you,” he mumbled against her hand. “About bringing up other people whilst we’re doing this?” His hands gripped her hips hard as he encouraged her to move faster.

She put her hands down on either side of his head and tilted herself forwards, deliciously increasing both the amount of friction and the pace. “Good?” she asked.

He stared at her like she was daft. “Better than good,” he promised.

They stayed in that position for a while, until the Doctor decided to shake things up. He rolled them again, so that he was on top, and thrust into her so hard that she moved a couple of inches up the bed. He looked entirely too smug about it too, so Rose decided to wipe the grin off his face. She reached her hand down to where they were joined. “Want a job doing properly, gotta do it myself,” she teased.

He growled and grabbed her wayward hand, pinning it above her head. “Allow me,” he teased back graciously, and touched her where she’d been about to touch herself.

Rose moaned and threw her head back, her mouth falling open in pleasure. “Fuck,” she mumbled.

The Doctor sighed happily. “You are so…”

“What?” she managed to say, between gasps.

“Sexy,” he concluded, and then neither of them said anything else coherent for a rather long time.

::

He rolled off of her. All his muscles ached. It felt wonderful.

“Rose,” he whispered.

Catching her breath, she replied, “Yeah?”

“That was completely brilliant.”

“I know,” she laughed softly.

“Rose?”

“Yes?”

The Doctor then moved onto his side, so that he could look at her as she recuperated. He stroked her hair out of her eyes and cupped her cheek tenderly. Her eyes met his and she held her breath at the love she saw in his gaze.

And then he broke the illusion by saying, “I’m pretty sure that was the best shag ever in the history of time and space.”

“And here I was thinking you were about to say something a little more romantic,” she scoffed.

“That is romantic,” he retorted.

“Yeah, all right.”

“That session of lovemaking should be written about in history books, that’s all I’m saying,” he defended, flopping onto his back again with a contented sigh.

She giggled. “Maybe if you ever write your memoirs it will be.”

“Now there’s an idea,” he pondered thoughtfully.

“Don’t you dare!” she laughed, rolling onto her side to gaze at him. “God, you’re so handsome when you’re shagged out,” she whispered.

“Now who’s the epitome of romance?” he said sarcastically.

“It was more romantic than what you said.”

“No it wasn’t.”

“Yes it was.”

“It wasn’t.”

“Was.”

“Why are you so competitive?”

“Me? Me?”

“Yes, you. Miss ‘bet I can make you come quicker,’” he reminded her.

Her cheeks heated up. “Can’t believe I actually said that.”

“Well that was earlier. What you said just a few moments ago was even better,” he grinned. He couldn’t resist teasing her. “Something about ‘harder, faster, Doctor!’”

“Don’t.”

“Don’t what?”

“Don’t repeat anything that I said whilst we were having sex.”

“Why not? It was very inspiring.”

“Stop it.”

“Stop what?”

“Taking the piss.”

“I’m not!” he insisted, wrapping his arm around her. He dropped a kiss to the tip of her nose. “I’m not, I promise.”

They snuggled together in silence for a few moments. Then Rose said, “What did you say, by the way? I heard you mumble something in your language when you – you know. So what did that mean, then?”

“It was probably just incoherent cursing or something,” he said, tugging on his ear with his free hand. “I don’t remember.”

She eyed his movements suspiciously. “You liar. What did you say?”

“What? What makes you think I’m lying?”

“You’ve got many, many tells, Doctor, and one of them is the pulling your ear off thing that you attempt to do when you’re trying to make something up.”

“Ah.”

“Yeah. So come on then, out with it. What, did you recite some Gallifreyan poem or something?” she joked. “The equivalent of a Shakespeare sonnet?” She paused, then leant in to murmur darkly, “Are you secretly your planet’s version of Byron? You ever met him? Or – I dunno, who else writes love poetry?” 

“Rose,” he whispered, staring into her eyes in that deep and meaningful way again.

She wasn’t going to be fooled this time. She decided to guess what faux-romantic thing he could possibly say next. “What now? Was the way I moved my hips worthy of an award or something?”

“Well, yes, but that wasn’t what I was going to say.”

“What were you going to say, then?”

He gathered her as close as possible and pressed a quick kiss to her lips. And then he was murmuring, quietly and seriously, “I love you, Rose.”

She stared at him in shock. “Oh,” she whispered.

“You knew that already,” he pointed out carefully. “So I don’t know why you look so surprised.”

She swallowed hard. “Never thought I’d hear you say it,” she admitted.

“Well, this is our perfect night,” he reasoned. “And it’s true. And you deserve to hear it.”

She smiled knowingly. “Just a one-off, then?”

“What?” he looked alarmed. “I was under the impression that we’d be doing this regularly -”

“Not what I meant,” she replied, rolling her eyes. “Of course we’re doing the sex again. Tomorrow, preferably. No, I meant the declaration of love. Was that just a one-off, ‘cos it’s our special night?”

“I…” He paused, tilting his head to the side contemplatively. “I won’t pretend to understand the human desire to say it every five minutes – I mean, once you know, you know, right? I’d worry that it’d lose its value if I said it at the rate some humans do.” He paused when Rose raised her eyebrows, then continued, ”But I do acknowledge that it’s a prerequisite in a human relationship, and seeing as you are human and I want you to be assured of how committed to you I am, I’ll say it as often as possible.”

“That’s very thoughtful of you,” she smiled, pressing a kiss to his chest. She realised that his hearts were beating far too quickly, at odds with his calm exterior. “Doctor? You all right?”

“Mmhmm, course I am,” he replied hastily. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“It’s just, your hearts are beating really fast.”

“Well we did just do a lot of exercise,” he pointed out, running his hand up and down her bare back.

“Yeah, but…what is it? Are you nervous about something?”

“No.”

“Doctor.”

“What?”

“I can tell when you are lying to me, remember.”

“Oh.”

“What’s wrong?”

He sighed. “I’ve got something that I want to ask you, but I’m not sure – I’m not sure if I should.”


	30. Chapter 30

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter! Thanks for reading :)

“Ask me,” she insisted warmly. “Whatever it is. Just ask.”

He reached for her hand and absently linked their fingers. “What we just did was brilliant,” he started carefully. “Absolutely breathtakingly wonderful. But I was wondering if maybe, next time, we could try something…extra.”

“Extra?” she asked, her eyebrows jumping up her forehead.

“Mmm. You see, I’ve always wondered - ” he cut himself off, worried at her hesitant expression. “Rose, listen, you can say no. Let me tell you what I mean and if you don’t fancy it, then just say, all right? Because I don’t mind.”

“Okay…” she replied slowly.

“Okay. Well, I’ve always wondered what it’d feel like to, um, be inside your mind, and you be inside mine, whilst we…”

Rose started to smile, a slow, curious thing that made his breath hitch. “What, like, telepathy during sex? Is that – is that a thing?”

The Doctor chuckled, curling into her, burying his face in her neck. “Possibly.”

“Doctor, are you embarrassed?” Rose laughed, running her fingers through his hair and pulling his head back to look at his expression. “You’re blushing,” she pointed out.

“It’s just a little nerve-wracking, asking you something like this.”

“Why, though?” She lifted her eyebrows up and down. “You know me, up for anything, I am.”

He laughed and cupped her upper arm in his hand, stroking his thumb over the curve of her shoulder. “It’s a bit scandalous,” he admitted.

Rose leant in close, scratching her nails against the nape of his neck. “Really?”

“Mmhmm.” He paused, searching her eyes, which were twinkling mischievously at him. “Does that appeal to you? The idea, I mean.”

“What will it be like?”

“I’m not completely sure how much will feel the same for you, what with you being human. But it won’t be uncomfortable or anything like that. You remember those shields I helped you build up after Cassandra went into your mind? You just build those walls around your memories and the most personal of thoughts, and I won’t be able to see them. It’s the surface stuff we’ll be able to sense, the building pleasure, the way we feel about one another. What it’s about, Rose, is feeling…” He trailed off, trying to figure out how to put it. He urged her closer, so that their bodies were pressed against one another. “Feeling absolutely connected to someone. Being inside you, physically, is…” he let out a whoosh of breath. “It’s amazing. But being inside your mind, feeling that close to someone, it just…it heightens every sensation, makes everything even brighter and more focussed.” His hand wandered down her back as he spoke, fingers dancing along her spine until he reached her bum, squeezing it gently. He watched her face, saw her hanging onto his every word with an openness that warmed him deep in his chest. “I don’t want to make it sound like it’s necessary we go for it, because it’s not. I am perfectly satisfied with repeating what we just did. I just thought I’d…put it out there, just in case you wanted to give it a go. Maybe. But there’s no pressure, and it’s fine if you don’t want to - ”

“The thought of being inside my head when we’re having sex,” Rose murmured, interrupting him, “Does it turn you on?” The Doctor’s cheeks flushed again, and Rose grinned, glad to have the upper hand here, where she could make him blush for a change. “Obviously it does,” she smirked. “So let’s try it. Is there something I can say or do to let you know if it’s not…”

“Yes, of course!” he said quickly, eager to reassure her since she sounded so up for the idea. “You can push me completely out of your mind at any time, if you don’t like it or change your mind or – well, for any reason at all. Just fling a closed door at me.”

She tilted her head slightly. “Would that hurt you?”

“It’d be comfier to ease out of each other’s heads more slowly, certainly, but I don’t mind getting a headache from having you shutting me out too quickly if necessary – I’m grateful you’re even considering this, and your comfort is what’s most important to me.”

“What about emotionally? Would it come between us if for some reason I couldn’t handle it?”

The Doctor leant in and pressed a soft kiss to her lips. “Of course not. Like I said, that you’re even willing for us to try is – it means a lot to me.”

“Really?” she whispered.

“Yeah.” He kissed her again, for longer this time, parting his mouth against hers. He traced her bottom lip with his tongue before sucking on it gently, pulling a moan from her throat.

“Shit, though, we’re gonna have to wait ‘til tomorrow,” she pointed out, when they broke their kiss to catch their breath. Her lips twitched. “We need to pop to the shops, remember.”

The Doctor chuckled, and nuzzled her nose briefly. “All right, then. Let’s get cleaned up and then sleep. And tomorrow, Rose Tyler; _tomorrow_ …”

Rose giggled at the promise in his twinkling eyes, and sat up, grabbing his hand. “Come on then, I bagsy the prime spot in the shower right underneath the shower spray.”

“You would,” he grumbled good-naturedly, letting her drag him from the bed. “But I bagsy prime spot right behind you.”

“As long as you keep your hands to yourself,” she grinned, shouldering open the door to the ensuite.

“Can’t guarantee that. Besides, you’ll want me to wash your back for you, you’ll see.”

::

The following morning, Rose woke up slowly, stretching her arms above her head and glancing around, trying to get her bearings. She realised with a start that she was in the Doctor’s bed, and grinned to herself as the memories of the night before returned to her. “Hmm,” she hummed contentedly, turning onto her side. The Doctor was still asleep next to her, on his front with one hand tucked beneath his pillow. Rose leant in close and pressed a kiss to his shoulder, laughing when he burrowed his nose further into the pillow with a grunt. She reached out and stroked her hand down his bare back, and after a few moments the tickling sensation woke him up, his eyes fluttering open. His lips curved into a grin at the sight of her, and she realised they probably looked daft, beaming at each other like they were; but she couldn’t help it. She was very, _very_ happy.

The Doctor moved his arm, wrapping it around her waist and tugging her close. “Morning,” he whispered.

"Morning." She kissed his nose, then his cheek, and he made a soft but rather growling sort of noise, burying his face in her neck, kissing and nibbling and sucking as he situated a leg in between hers.

"Where do you want to go today?" he asked, before licking over the mark he’d just made on the column of her throat. Rose made a mental note that it was to be a jumper day today, with maybe a scarf thrown in for good measure. She didn’t mind their friends knowing about them being…together, but she didn’t think they ought to advertise it so blatantly via showcasing several lovebites. 

"Don’t mind," she replied, playing with his hair. 

"Shame we have guests to think about," he mumbled, pushing the duvet out of the way and smoothing his hand across her curves. "Otherwise we could just spend the day in here."

Rose laughed, a small, happy giggle that turned into a hitch in her breathing when he dropped his mouth to her chest, sucking at the top of her left breast. “Okay, we’re gonna have to get up, like, right now,” she told him, even as she fisted her hand in his hair to keep his mouth where it was.

He glanced up at her. “Five minutes,” he said, a simple statement of intent, then returned his mouth to her breast, stroking his tongue across her nipple. His hand shifted down, down between her legs, and Rose grabbed hold of the headboard behind her and groaned. He was true to his word; in just five minutes he had rendered Rose a quivering mess, but when she half-heartedly reached out to return the favour, he chuckled and kissed her quickly on the lips. “I’m fine,” he said, stroking her hair back from where it stuck to her face. “You recover. I’ll make breakfast.”

::

Later, the Doctor, feeling very cheerful after the night (and morning) he and Rose had shared, was whistling to himself as he jumped around the console flicking switches and pulling levers, readying the TARDIS for flight.

As he was caught up in his own thoughts, Reinette had to alert him to her presence by coughing pointedly. He span around and beamed at her. “Oh! Hello. Sorry. Are you all right?”

She smiled at him knowingly and answered, “Yes, I’m fine, thank you. I do have a request, though.”

“Oh?” The Doctor leant against the console, his expression open and obliging. “Have you thought of somewhere you would like to go today?”

Reinette looked to the floor for a few moments, as though collecting herself. She smoothed out a few wrinkles in her dress, and that was when the Doctor realised she was wearing her own clothes – the dress she had boarded the TARDIS wearing days ago.

“Oh,” he nodded, understanding. “You’d like to visit your time?”

“Yes,” she murmured, looking back up at him. “Well, actually…I’d like to go home. For good, really.”

“Ah.” The Doctor nodded again. They were quiet for a few moments. “Is this because - ” he started, wondering if she knew about him and Rose.

“It is because I have realised that I miss it. My life. Court, my friends, Louis… I miss all of it. You have shown me some wonderful things, Doctor. And this - ” Here, she gestured around them, looking around the room with awe. “This strange, glorious home of yours. It’s marvellous. It’s exciting, and you and Rose and Mickey are made for it. But I – I cannot quite reconcile myself to this way of life. You visit lovely places sometimes, and I never dreamt that there worlds and times out there so full of colour and _life_. But the darkness, too, the _fear_ – I cannot – I thought I would quite like the danger, or at least, I thought I would not mind it so much, with you there. And you are, still, I believe, worth the monsters. But I’m afraid one week in the life of the Doctor is strangely quite enough, for me. I hope you do not think me ungrateful - ”

“Not at all,” he said quietly, giving her a soft smile. “I understand.”

“Rose tells me that it is not in your nature to revisit those you meet. So I have resigned myself to the fact I probably shan’t see any of you again.”

The Doctor inhaled a sharp breath. He could not contradict her; after all, as he had told Rose a few days ago, Reinette would tragically only live for a few more years, and it would cause problems if he were to get the dates wrong and visit her too late. He couldn’t tell Reinette to wait and see, couldn’t assure her that one day they might pop by to see her; it would be cruel to keep her hanging on, never knowing.

Reinette nodded, evidently seeing his agreement with her summation written all over his face. “I see I am correct in that assumption,” she smiled carefully.

“Are you sure you don’t want to stay a bit longer?” Rose asked, and the Doctor and Reinette turned towards the voice. Rose was standing in the shadows of the console room, having entered a short time ago when Reinette was speaking.

“I’m certain,” Reinette confirmed, stepping over to Rose. She drew the woman into a hug, and whispered into her ear, “It’s time for me to go. And it’s time for you two to start afresh.”

Rose hugged her back tightly, keeping her in the embrace for longer than Reinette was expecting. Patting Rose on the back, Reinette carefully extricated herself from Rose’s grip, and grasped her hands. “Goodbye, Rose. I know you might not think it, but you have taught me a great deal.”

“I have?”

“Yes,” Reinette smiled, and squeezed Rose’s fingers. “Thank you for having me.”

Rose swallowed hard. “You’re welcome,” she replied, not quite knowing what to say. “I’ll go and get Mickey, so that you can say bye to him.”

“That would be nice,” Reinette said politely.

Alone with the Doctor again once Rose had left the room, Reinette closed the distance between them and cupped his cheek. “And thank you, Fireplace Man,” she smiled. “You have provided me with some lovely memories about the universe to take home with me. Whenever I shall look to the stars, I shall think of you and Rose, flying around in this little blue box that contains so much.” She stroked her thumb across the apple of his cheek, then withdrew her hand. “Now, Rose informed me the other day that when you first took her home to visit her mother, you landed on the wrong day – the wrong year, even. Do you think perhaps you could try to get it right for me? I do not quite know how I would explain my absence if we were to land too far into Louis’ future.”

The Doctor chuckled. “Hopefully it’ll be all right,” he answered. “Give me a few minutes to concentrate.” He nodded to where Rose had re-entered the console room with Mickey. “You go and say your goodbyes.”

Reinette nodded. She still didn’t know quite how to interact with Mickey Smith, so once she reached him, she simply said, “Goodbye, Mickey. I wish you every success in keeping an eye on these two and making sure they don’t get themselves killed in some foolish scheme or another. And good luck with the prison cells when they inevitably drag you into trouble with them.”

Mickey and Rose laughed, and Reinette held out her hand regally towards Mickey. He didn’t realise that she was probably angling for him to kiss her hand, and instead took it in his, giving her a firm handshake. Rose pressed her lips together to hold in a laugh when Reinette raised her eyebrows.

“Hold on to something,” the Doctor called out, as he pulled at the handbrake.

Reinette, Rose and Mickey grabbed hold of the railings whilst the Doctor flew the TARDIS back to France. Reinette smiled as she took in the experience for the very last time, impressing the exhilarating feeling onto her mind so that when she returned to her life at court, she could pursue something, and she wasn’t quite sure what as yet, that would give her the same rush of feeling as hurtling through space and time – just at a minimal cost to her life and sanity.

::

After dropping Reinette home, the Doctor flew the TARDIS to Jackie’s. They had dinner together, all four of them, and told Jackie about their recent adventures with their newly departed guest. In the late afternoon, Mickey wanted to pop by the pub to see his mates and watch the football, and Rose thought it’d be a good opportunity to get in her mum’s good books by offering to do her shopping for her. The Doctor grumbled about this for a few minutes, right up until Rose whispered in his ear that they sold jumbo packs of something pertaining to their interests at the big Tesco down the road.

“Ah,” he squeaked, whilst she smirked at him. “In that case, let’s go.” He seized her hand and pulled her towards the front door. “See you in a bit, Jackie!” he called out as they prepared to leave, helping Rose with her coat, as reluctant to stop touching her now as he had been all day.

Jackie came out of the kitchen wiping her hands with a tea-towel and looking surprised. “What, you’re going with her?”

“Mmhmm!”

“But you hate shopping.”

“He’s gonna help me carry the bags,” Rose grinned.

“Wow, you really are in a good mood,” Jackie remarked, eyeing the Doctor suspiciously. “All right, then. See you later. Don’t forget to grab me that bottle of wine to take to Howard’s.”

“No problemo,” the Doctor said enthusiastically, then bounded out the door, dragging Rose along with him.

Rose threw a goodbye over her shoulder to her mum, who stood there shaking her head for a moment, wondering what had come over them. “Pair of nutters,” she mumbled, then returned to the kitchen to resume the washing-up.

::

When they got back to the flat, Rose helped Jackie unpack the food shopping whilst the Doctor covertly sneaked their rather more personal purchase onto the TARDIS. After having a cuppa with her mum, Rose made her excuses and said goodnight; they would have breakfast together in the morning, and hang around until Mickey came back to the ship before they took off.

Rose entered the console room to find the Doctor lounging on the jumpseat with his ankles crossed, feet propped up against the console.

“So…” Rose said, her lips twitching. “Early night?”

The Doctor gave her a wolfish grin. “Definitely.” He jumped up and put his hands in his pockets, rocking back on his heels as he nodded his head in the direction of the corridor. “Yours or mine?”

“Yours again,” she replied, walking over to him. She linked her arm through his and they started walking. “ _Much_ comfier mattress. Your ship has been holding out on me.”

“ _Our_ -” the Doctor started, then slammed his lips together.

“What was that?” Rose prompted, looking up at him.

He sniffed. “Nothing. Just, uh. Cohabitation and all that. This is – it’s your home, too. You know that, right?”

Rose smiled, and pressed her lips to his shoulder. “Yeah. Ta.”

They reached his bedroom. Once inside, Rose sat on the edge of his bed and looked over at him in time to see him tugging on his ear nervously. “What’s up?” she asked.

He shrugged, and unbuttoned his jacket. She noticed his hands were shaking slightly. “I was just wondering if you’ve thought any more about – what we discussed. Last night.”

Rose smiled. “Yeah. I already said we could try it, though.”

“I know, I just – wanted to check you hadn’t changed your mind.”

“Nope.” She lifted her eyebrow. “Been looking forward to it all day. You?”

The Doctor let out a long breath and, relieved, he sat down next to her and said, “Me too.”

He had his hand on his thigh, and Rose inched her own hand over to cover his, squeezing gently. He turned his head towards her and watched as she licked her bottom lip. Unable to resist, he leant in and kissed her, taking that lip between both of his.

Slowly, and without breaking their kiss, they shifted around, so that Rose was lying on her back, head on the pillows, with the Doctor hovering over her. Pulling back so that she could catch her breath, the Doctor sneaked his hand beneath her top, fingers climbing her ribs like a ladder until they reached their destination, squeezing her breast. A smile played upon his lips, and his eyes were locked onto hers. Rose’s own hands were busy groping his bum, and she smirked up at him, daring him to say something. Instead of responding vocally, he aligned their hips, rubbing against her in just the right way, smirking right back, and Rose groaned at the feeling of him hot and hard and trapped beneath fabric. He trailed his lips along her jaw, nipping his way to her earlobe. When Rose dipped one of her hands beneath the waistband of his trousers, he jerked against her.

With that, the pace of their playful exploration changed. Rose used all her strength to flip their position, pushing him onto his back and straddling his thighs. She hurriedly discarded her jumper and vest top, and whilst she reached behind her to pop open the clasp of her bra, the Doctor unbuttoned her jeans. She moved off him to rid herself of the denim, taking her knickers off along with it. Sensing her urgency, the Doctor took care of his own clothes and converses, deciding that he most definitely needed to feel her bare skin against his as soon as possible.

“Did you bring the - ” Rose started to ask, as she rolled towards him gloriously naked.

“Already put them, pride of place, in the bedside table drawer,” he interrupted, leaning over and extracting a condom from said drawer.

“I love it when you come prepared,” she said, shooting him a naughty grin as she grabbed it off him and undid the wrapper.

“I love it when you come, full stop,” he retorted, pushing at her shoulder and crawling over her when her back was to the mattress again.

Rose cackled, clutching her side. “Can’t believe you said that.”

“You offered me the line, I took it,” he defended, shrugging a shoulder.

Once she’d stopped giggling, Rose withdrew the condom from its packet and slid it onto his cock. 

“You’re moving this along very quickly,” the Doctor said casually, quirking an eyebrow. He slipped his hand between them and inserted two fingers into her to ensure she was actually ready. His other eyebrow jumped up his forehead when he felt how wet she was. “Oh.”

Rose flushed a bit, batting his hand away and guiding his cock to her entrance. “I’ve been ready for this all day.”

The Doctor cleared his throat, ridiculously turned on by this news. “Right, then.” He moved forwards, sliding deep, and settled in, grasping beneath her knee with one hand. She quickly wrapped her legs around him, and he kissed her as she wriggled a bit to get comfy.

“So, um,” Rose murmured, sweeping her hands through his hair. “We gonna try the mind thing?”

“You sure that’s okay?” he checked.

She nodded. “Definitely. How…?”

“I’ll just get the connection going…” he started, then showed her what he meant, placing his fingers at the sides of her head, tips resting against her temples. Closing his eyes, he murmured, “It’ll feel like something’s tickling, itching to be welcomed.”

Rose closed her eyes too, trying to concentrate. “I don’t…ohhh.” She could feel him, could feel a presence hovering inside her head. “Wow, it feels…”

“Okay?” he asked hesitantly.

“Weird, but…” She relaxed her mind, though she was heedful of sustaining the walls around her memories. She trusted the Doctor with her life, with her love, even; but as they had previously discussed, privacy was important. “Good weird,” she sighed happily.

“Are you sure?”

“Mmmmm,” she said, opening her thoughts to welcome him in.

The Doctor, on the receiving end of her warm welcome, couldn’t help but groan in delight, and his hips bucked against hers quite involuntarily. She wriggled beneath him again, arching her back slightly, encouraging him to change the angle; she wanted him as deep as he could go. He seemed to feel the same, especially regarding his presence in her mind. She felt sudden sharp sparks of desire warm her from the inside.

"Blimey, this is…" the Doctor mumbled. He strengthened the link between them by opening up his own thoughts, and Rose gasped, clenching him inside her as she felt his love seep into her mind. Trying to ignore the lump in his throat that the feeling of being so entwined with another being, with _Rose_ , provoked, he started to thrust, building up a quickening rhythm. Rose kept making little noises of encouragement, her grip on his hair growing fiercer, her grip on his cock tighter. A few Gallifreyan swear-words stumbled from his lips and he tried to slow his pace, unwilling for things to be over too quickly. She sent him images and thoughts and feelings in his head, though - only half-aware of just how well she was projecting, probably - and the Doctor was overwhelmed by the sheer vitality of their mental connection. Never had he experienced anything so personal, so pleasurable, so utterly poignant, as sharing this intimate act with Rose Tyler.

For all she was writhing beneath him and calling out his name, the Doctor was a little worried that he would come before she had a chance to do so. To ensure that she gained as much satisfaction from the gift she was giving him as he would, he slipped his hand between them, rubbing and pinching at her clit. Rose felt him whispering to her, not out loud but in her mind, urging her to come, and with a sudden, strangely emotional jolt of pleasure, she did. 

He slowed time down around them, a handy trick he didn’t realise he had the capability of performing until he had done it, drawing out her release. Rose clutched and clawed at his back and shoulders as the intense waves of pleasure swept through her, and then his fragile grasp on time slipped and stuttered as they returned to reality. Swiftly after this, the Doctor came to his own release with a loud groan, continuing to thrust into her with shallow movements as they rode through their orgasms, his cock pulsing and twitching and his mind full of euphoric pleasure. 

He shuddered to a stop and collapsed atop her, his nose smushed into her cheek, his arms exhausted. Rose panted for breath in his ear, smoothing her hands down his slick back, patiently waiting for him to recover enough to lift his weight off her. A few moments later, he eased out of her, body and mind, and they both groaned quietly at the loss. Flopping onto his back, he quickly disposed of the condom, too tired to do anything other than dropping it over the side of the bed. He’d clean up properly later. He stared up at the ceiling, utterly overcome by the experience they had just shared.

Muscles aching, Rose moved slowly onto her side, swallowing hard as she took in the expression on his face. He was being so – so _silent_ –

“Are you okay, Doctor?” she murmured, tentatively reaching her hand out towards him.

He turned his head at the same time that he grasped her hand in his, bringing their joined fingers to rest on his chest. “I’m just…” he exhaled roughly. “Blimey, Rose. I’ve just – never known anything like that.” He squinted at her, suddenly realising how nervous she looked. “Rose? Did you – was that okay?”

She offered him a small smile, still unsure about his reaction. “Yeah, it was amazing. A bit overwhelming, but…I liked it. I _loved_ it.”

The Doctor’s cheeks threatened to burst with the force of his beaming grin. “Really?” His grin faded slightly. “You’re not – you’re not just saying that?”

“No,” Rose laughed. “It really was the most amazing experience I’ve ever had.”

“Oh,” he murmured, biting his lip, his eyes shining. “Good.” He squeezed her hand. “Me too.”

She looked dubious. “Yeah?”

“Rose, you’ve - ” he cut himself off, swallowing thickly. “Thank you. It was…I can’t even describe it.”

Rose smiled in relief. “Oh, that’s – that’s great. And you don’t have to thank me.”

He rolled over to her, letting go of her hand and cupping her jaw, kissing her deeply with the little remaining energy he had. When he broke the kiss, he leant his forehead against hers, and felt a few remaining sparks of their earlier link flicker in his mind. He blinked quickly, alarmed by the sudden moisture in his eyes. He wasn’t a weepy person by nature, but he was most definitely feeling quite emotional at that moment. The lingering warmth in his head from their connection, the way it had touched each corner of his mind, burning down the barricade he had constructed there in his loneliness, illuminating all the closed doors…it was as though Rose’s brief but significant presence there had cast a glow across even his most darkest of locked-away memories. It was humbling, it was moving; it felt like forgiveness, it felt like - 

“I love you very much,” he whispered across her lips, and even as he said the words he acknowledged what an understatement the phrase was.

“I love you too,” she whispered back, running her hand through his hair. “And I’m glad it went well, the, uh, telepathy thing.”

“Me too,” he chuckled, nuzzling her nose.

“I don’t think we can do it like that every time though,” she said quietly, biting her lip. “I loved it, but it’s…” She let out a whoosh of breath. “It’s so intense. So emotional. I dunno if I could handle it being like that every time we have sex,” she laughed nervously.

He grinned and nodded. “No, it’s okay, I know what you mean. We’ll, um…save it for special occasions.”

“That’s all right?”

“Yep,” he assured her, wrapping his arm around her waist.

“Promise?”

“I promise.”

“Okay. Great. God, it was so good though. When you did that thing - you did something didn’t you? The time thing,” she paused, waiting for his response, and when he nodded she continued, “Fuck, it felt like it was gonna go on forever.”

He laughed again, and peppered her face with a few adoring kisses. “I am so glad you liked it.” He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “And I’m so glad I met you.”

Rose smiled. “I am pretty exhausted now, though.”

“As am I.”

“You gonna sleep tonight, then?”

“Mmhmm,” he murmured, his eyelids already drooping.

“Two nights in a row, eh? Unusual for you.”

“Been doing some pretty unusual things for me, these last two nights,” he pointed out, smiling, eyes shut.

“Mm, that’s true,” she grinned, snuggling into him. She let her own eyes drift shut. “Night, then, Doctor.”

“Night night, Rose Tyler.”


End file.
